Dark Destiny
by Joe Elf
Summary: When Midna leaves for the Twilight, Link is unsure what to do until he and Zelda find a way back. Unfortunately, their plan is hindered by a mysterious man with a lot of information. What will happen when Link and Midna reunite? And what of the Dark Sword?
1. Dark Destiny

**Hey everybody! This is my first ever attempt , not only at fanfic, but at writing in general. I want to point out that this fic will be completed by June 2nd and will comprise of 90 pages on openoffice. This is because I wrote this story on a bet but I'm still pleased about the way it's turning out. I will be uploading every weekend for at least 6 weeks because I've already written six chapters.**

**Also, I began writing this before I finished playing Skyward Sword so I tried to make it as logical as possible, but it's possible I left soomething out. If you see anything, just point it out in the comments. Next, the title may seem innapropriate ate first, but it will become clear in futur chapters. I hope you enjoy the story and I thank you for actually reading it: you're awesome.**

**(Edit, August 7 2012: I would never have thought to get as far as I am, nor improve as much as I have. It's cool to see the progressive level of detail as the story goes on... Thanks to everyone for their support!)**

**Disclamer: I do not own Legend of Zelda. All OC names and places are fictional and any resemblance to other fanfictions, actual places or names is purely coincidental.**

Prologue:

"Link... I... See you later..."

As these words were spoken, Link understood what was about to happen. "No!" He cried out, even as the last of Midna's particles were transferred to the Twilight. Link whipped his head around toward the mirror just in time to see it shatter into a million peaces and float, dust-like, throughout the entire chamber. "Midna." Link choked out, tears forming rapidly in his eyes. "Why, why?" said the hero, collapsing onto his knees.

He felt a gentle hand rest upon his shoulder and a soft, reassuring voice utter "She did what she thought needed to be done. It is best this way." Link slowly turned and glared up at the princess from his kneeling position and she was saddened by his tone.

"Best for who, _milady_? Best for you bureaucrats who would have to deal with the truth about their existence?"

Zelda responded, a look of hurt upon her face. "Best for everyo-"

"You have no idea what I've been through!" said Link, rising up. "It wasn't my choice to be the _oh so great _"hero of twilight"! And yet I nearly got burned, clawed, frozen, crushed, eaten, sliced in two and all that, without complaining. Then the one person who could understand me was denied to me because of your accursed politics!"

Breathing heavily, Link sat down again. The princess, knowing that he would have to eventually face the truth, hesitated on how best to phrase the inevitable. "Link..." She began. "I know it must hurt. I could feel how strong the bond was between you two thanks to the powers of my Triforce, but she stated her thoughts: light and shadow can never mix. As I said before, they are two sides of the same coin, never to truly see each other. What would come of it? There are twili who would accept us with open arms and others that... Wouldn't. What do you think the mingling of light and dark would produce?"

Link, not having a reply, said nothing. "Come." Said Zelda, "We should head back to the castle. You will finally be able to rest. You must have had a hectic journey."

"You don't know the half of it," Link grumbled grudgingly, thinking, amongst others, of the time he had journeyed from Lake Hylia to Hyrule castle in a desperate attempt to save Midna's life.

After the journey home and after showing the hero to his room, she returned to her own and immediately went to bed and fell asleep. The hero, on the other hand, stayed up late into the night, thinking about what could have been.

**Extremely short prologue. No other chapters will be this short, I promise! R&R, please.**


	2. Chapter 1: The Blade of Evil's Bane

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 1 right away (since the prologue is so short).  
>Fun fact about this chapter: In my first draft, Link got very drunk and tried some dumb stuff (which I will not name). I took that out though, I found it a bit over the top.<strong>

**Disclamer: If I owned Nintendo, I wouldn't be on _Fan_fiction. Emphasis on _FAN_**

Chapter 1: _The Blade of Evil's Bane._

Over the next few days, Zelda expected Link to get back to his old self. Unfortunately, she was sorely disappointed. The hero rarely ate and seemed to never sleep. Spending unending hours simply staring at the sky, willing the hour of twilight to come.

Beginning to get seriously worried that her friend, for that is how she considered him, would never recover from his turmoil, she spent hour after hour looking through the royal library to see if there was any way she could help him. She knew that creating a new portal would be the best way to help the hero, but there were two problems with doing that. First off, she had no idea how to create a new portal. The whole point of Midna breaking the mirror was to close the gateway between both worlds permanently and completely. Second, she was not sure that opening a new portal was a wise decision. She was not sure how Midna would react. Sadly, she realized that she knew very little on how her twilight counterpart acted, having only seen her a few times.

Over the next few months, Link's situation slowly got better. Or worse, depending on your point of view. He no longer refused to eat or sleep, but he simply didn't do anything. He meandered around Hyrule fields, slaying the few monsters that had stayed after Ganondorf's defeat, he avoided all social contact with people and even refused to go back to Ordon village to see Illia, Collin, Rusl, the newborn baby and everyone else. The only voyages he ever took were to the Arbiter's grounds, to mourn and even there he refused to speak to the sages. The only person to whom he reacted was the princess. Every day, after the hour of twilight, he would approach her in the library and ask her how her search was going.

Zelda had long ago told Link what she was doing in an attempt to cheer him up. She regretted that now, for she had begun to believe she had given him a false hope. Nothing she had read so far, not one in about a thousand books, gave any clue as to a solution, until one day...

As per usual, Link entered the library and looked around for Zelda. He dreaded and prayed for this time every day, for it always marked either another day of regrets or a solution to his apathy. He missed Midna, he really did. "Why?" he sometimes asked himself and every time, Midna's little laughs and prompt retorts came to mind. He remembered all the fun times they had had between quests when they took the time to relax for a day or so. Ever since the end of his quest, everything seemed just so... boring. By reaching her, Link could again relax and have fun, like all those times...

Wrenching himself back to the present, the green-clad lad spotted Princess Zelda and his heart gave a feeble leap. She was smiling. He hurried forward, a small hope starting to swell within him. Reaching her table, he asked his usual question, trying to mask his growing excitement. "So, did you find anything today?" Zelda smiled even wider at this and said

"I just may have found a way to repair the mirror"

Link just stood there, stunned, while Zelda let out a most un-princessly giggle.

"You... you mean it?" asked Link, dazed by the possibilities.

"Yes, hero, I mean it. You should sit down if you want to hear the story though..." Link, still in a bit of a stupor, quickly sat down and cleared his head so as to concentrate on the tale.

"I'm ready, go ahead" he said.

"You know, of course, of the Master Sword. Its true name is the blade of evil's bane. That you know as well. What you didn't know, and nor did I until today, was that the Master Sword has an opposite."

"A what-"

"Don't interrupt, I'll get there" Said Zelda. "The Master Sword was forged long ago by unknown means. It was a blade said to defeat all that is evil in the sacred land. However, to keep said land in balance, another blade was forged, but in secret. In this book it says: "The other blade, was of a darkness of inexplicable depth. As though all light where sucked into the unholy artifact and used to power the evil within. It is a blade capable of resurrecting even the most vile of creatures and relics. Hence, it was the Goddesses' will that this blade be locked away, so that it's power may never be used. It is said that an ancient hero once took this blade and hid it deep within the most unnerving maze. An ancient place referred to only as the hidden temple of illusions".

Link listened to her story, his smile fading as she finished. "But Princess," he said. "How does this help? It sounds very dangerous and I don't see how simply having this evil sword or whatever is going to get m- create a link to the twilight..." the Hero finished desperately.

"Of course." responded Zelda. "That's the reason I overlooked this book in the first place. You see, if it's true and the Dark Sword, that's what they call it, can recreate evil artifacts, it is possible it will fix the mirror!"

"How?" asked Link, a little hotly. "The mirror isn't evil, and nor is the Twilight or its people."

The monarch smiled gently. "I know, Hero. But back when it was created, it was used as means to transport criminals. That means that to the Dark Sword it is probably considered an evil artifact. I know that it's still a bit of a long shot, but it's the only thing I've come up with so far."

The pair sat in silence for a time. Finally, Link responded. "I'll leave tomorrow at dawn." As the Hero rose to go to the quarters that were assigned to him, his friend responded:

"Leave where?"

"Well to get the Dark Sword, what else?" answered the Hero.

"Have you forgotten that you have no idea where it might be?" said Zelda, giggling a little. Link stopped dead in his tracks. How could he have been so stupid? "Well, where is it?" he asked.

"I don't know." said Zelda.

The Princess and the Hero sat in the stuffed armchairs that were scattered a bit everywhere in the royal library. "I can't believe you have no idea where this _temple of illusions_ is..." sighed Link. Zelda rolled her eyes.

"Well sorry if I don't know everything..."

"But you have the Triforce of wisdom! Can't you, like, wave your arm around and know anything you want or something?" asked Link. She shook her head.

"Wisdom and knowledge are not the same thing, oh Hero."

"Could you drop the title?"

"What we need..." said Zelda, ignoring Link's plea, "...is to find someone who could have heard this story or who is old enough to know something about this." She sighed... "The best would be someone who used to know the royal family, for I don't think the book, or indeed the story, would have been available to the general public..."

Silence fell. Link was looking at Zelda, seemingly lost in thought. "Perhaps we should sleep on i-" began the Princess.

"WAIT!" cried out Link wide-eyed and clutching the horse-whistle that the farm girl had made for him.

"Please, not so loud." said Zelda, flinching.

"But I think I've got it! A person that could help us, that is." said Link, jumping to his feet.

"What? Who?" demanded Zelda, intrigued.

"When I was searching for a way to get Ilia's memory back, I ran across an old woman who claimed to be the last of an ancient tribe who were guardians of the royal family. She was fairly old and she seemed to know a lot..."

As Link explained what had happened in the Hidden Village, Zelda's eyes grew wider and wider and as he finished, were of such proportions that they caused Link to smile at her comical expression. "This... This could be it!" she whispered. Link rose.

"Well, now that we have a plan, I can go to bed, unless I forgot something else, your majesty?"

"Nothing at all, Sir Link, good night."

The Hero and the Princess rose and both went to their separate quarters, eager for the next day.

* * *

><p>The following morning, Link rose early. The servants who served him breakfast were surprised as the Hero thanked them, smiling, for they could not remember the last time he had seemed so happy. Unbeknownst to Link, rumors started to circulate behind his back, rumors started by someone who had seen both the Hero and the Princess alone in the library the previous night...<p>

Deciding to say goodbye to Zelda before he left, Link packed his old adventuring gear: his clawshots, the hero's bow, his Hylian shield and everything else except the ball and chain, the spinner and the iron boots Bo had given him, for they were far too heavy. He also carried the Master Sword. He had been planning on returning it the next day, for its work was done, but seeing as he was about to begin a new quest, he decided to keep it.

Link sighed, wishing Midna was here now with her magical storage so that he didn't have to carry everything. As he finally reached the bottom of his wardrobe, he paused. A piece of black cloth covering something that was emitting a faint, orange glow was tucked into the corner. He paused, sure that nothing but his gear had been stored there, but equally sure that he had nothing like this in his inventory.

Not wanting to do something that could make the situation nasty, the green-clad hero unsheathed the Master Sword, which seemed heavier than usual, and carefully lifted the concealing cloth. What he saw almost forced him back to dreamland.

It was a rock. But not just any rock. It was rather taller than large and was pointy on both ends. It's sides were adorned with three more spikes on either side, making it look rather like an arrowhead that had been made to cause extreme pain if one would attempt to remove it. But what made this rock truly singular were the patterns engraved on it. Some were smooth, spiraling up and down. Others were rough, cubical and straight. And on each of the spikes coming out the side, orange runes, glowing with hidden power, pulsed as they were reflected in the eyes of the hero. It was the shadow crystal.

Link stared. "How could it be _here_?" he thought. During his quest to save Hyrule and the Twilight, the little imp that accompanied him used to keep it sealed away in her magical storage, retrieving it only when he needed to transform. As far as he knew, she had never said anything about leaving it with his gear.

Puzzled, he thought back to the moment she returned all his items, right before they left for the mirror. "Let's see, what did she say, exactly?" Link pondered. And then it hit him. The only possible explanation for Midna leaving such a dangerously magical object unprotected in the world of Light. The day she emptied his stock in the trunk, he remembered her joking about actually completely emptying her "magic pouch" because it was full of his stuff. He remembered her jokingly pointing out that it was normally the woman who filled the purse.

Thus, the Hero surmised that she must have forgotten that the shadow crystal was also with his gear and gave it back to him by accident. Disturbed by this discovery, Link decided to consult Zelda on what he should do with it. After a long moment, he covered the crystal with the cloth again, closed the closet and hurried out of his room to seek Zelda.

* * *

><p>Zelda sat on the throne, pondering about a recent trade agreement she had signed permitting the importation of goods from a neighboring kingdom. As someone knocked on the door she looked up, expecting Link to enter and say that he would be off. Unfortunately for her, it was not Link, but the most annoying member of the royal council: Lord Kantar. He was not so much annoying because of his manners or lust for power as he was because of his extreme obsession with obscure rules and his complete trust of unfounded rumors.<p>

For instance, it was because of him that the council as a whole was required to speak ancient Hylian when in session, along with having once ordered a bunch soldiers to arrest practically half the town after hearing that someone was going to assassinate the King before remembering that the King had died years ago.

Smiling politely, as was required of her, she bade him good morning and asked what she could do for him.

"Well, I simply wanted to offer my congratulations and state that you could have made no better choice." he responded kindly, smiling at her.

Confused, she said "Congratulations about what? What choice did I make? Is all this for that one trade agreement?" Kantar looked shocked.

"Of course not! I'm speaking of your engagement to Sir Link, hero of Hyrule!"

The Princess stared, his words sinking in. "What! Who told you we were engaged?"

"I don't really remember, everyone is talking about it." he replied, taken aback. Normally, people seemed happy when they were to get married and the Princess certainly did not seem happy.

"Whoever said this was lying." stated Zelda. "I have told the council that I am as of yet unwilling to search for suitors until such time as Hyrule is back to normal." She had indeed told them this, though more simply to push it back as far as possible. Wide-eyed, the Lord seemed embarrassed to have messed up so gravely in front of royalty. Stuttering an apology, he left the room as quickly as possible, muttering weakly about "tampered information".

As he closed the door behind him, Princess Zelda realized that unless she did something quick, Link was bound to hear about these "rumors". She was just getting up to send a servant to got get him when there was another knock at the door. Sitting down again, she called out "Enter." hoping to finish this quickly, but lost all hope when Link himself came through the door looking agitated.

"Look, I'm sorry Link. I swear I didn't know about these ridiculous rumors until just a moment ago."

"Zelda, I need to talk to you abou- Wait, what rumors?" he said, looking up curiously.

"Nothing, nothing, I just said... I... Didn't know you had such a ridiculous humor..." she said, improvising and thanking the Goddesses that he hadn't heard anything.

"My... Humor... What?" he replied, looking confused.

"Nothing, never mind." She answered quickly. "Anyway, what were you saying?"

"Oh yeah, well remember how I used to be able to transform into a wolf thanks to the shadow crystal Zant put in me? Well just a little while ago..."

As Link finished his story, he looked over to Zelda, who was looking shocked. A few moments passed as the pair thought about was should be done. Finally, she spoke. "Keep it, you might use it during your quest."

"I'm not sure that's a very good idea... It's dangerous and since Midna won't be around, I don't want to take any chances..."

"You should still have it, it is as much a part of you as the Master Sword and the rest of your gear, if not more. You cannot deny it is a part of you..." She smiled knowingly. "just as you cannot deny that it reminds you of _her._" Link bowed his head. He should have known the Princess would figure it out. She did have the Triforce of wisdom, after all.

In the end, he agreed to take it with him as somewhat of a good luck charm, though he knew he would not use it. Zelda also knew, but did not comment on it. She hoped it might help him get over the loss of the mirror because whatever she told Link, she was not too sure about whether or not their plan would work.

As Link hurried out of the castle on his way to the stables, he heard people talking about him behind his back. Something to do with Zelda and a library or something, but he was too preoccupied about both the stone in his pocket and the adventure at hand to really pay attention. So he simply ignored them all and made his way to Epona.

She was nibbling some hay in the stable when he arrived. Having alerted the stable boy of his departure in advance, Epona already had her saddle on and seemed eager to go for a ride with her new, happier master. Gently patting her nose, the Hero straddled her and, with a click from Link, they were off.

* * *

><p>Link... was... <em>Bored. <em>Bored with a capital B. As they finally approached the hidden village. Absolutely _nothing_ had happened. Not even a lonely little bulblin to dull the monotony. Just as he started to regret being so thorough in his cleansing of evil after the _incident_ at the... _place_, he saw the cave that Darbus had dug to helped him into the Hidden Village. Climbing off Epona and softly stoking her mane one last time, he began making his way to the actual village situated on the other side of the tunnel.

As he approached the old woman's house, Link had a serious _deja-vu_ moment. He remembered trying to find and kill the 20 bulblin archers that had made camp in the deserted town so that the old hermit would consent to come out of her house and speak with him. Thankfully, for he was eager to proceed on his quest, there were no enemies in sight. He therefor sidled up to the last house in the village and knocked softly.

"Come in." said a familiar old voice.

Walking in, Link immediately saw the old lady cooking something on the stove in the corner. As he closed the door, she looked around and smiled. "Ah! It's the young Hero. An honor to have you here, good sir. Would you care for some soup?" He accepted and they sat down at the tiny table in the middle of the room. "So, what can I do for you, chosen hero? Is that poor girl, Ilia I think her name was, is she doing well?" Link, about to respond, realized that he had no idea how she was now. Ashamed of his total indifference of the past few weeks, Link bowed his head and began explaining what had happened.

Finishing his story, and his soup, Link looked over to the last resident of the hidden village, hoping for something. "So, you want to know if I know anything about this legend, eh? It's true, I have heard of this story before. It was a story we used to tell children to teach them that evil can always return so that they would be more vigilant and better protectors for the royal family. I never knew if it had any basis in reality. In any case, the only thing that was ever said about the location of the sword was that it was in the hidden temple of illusions. Also, an old folk tale said that before we were even the protectors of the royal family, we protected the entrance to said temple and that it was somewhere close to here. But that was just a story," the old woman finished.

Link was lost in thought.

"The mountain behind the village, has anyone ever explored it?" That mountain was pretty much the only place in all of Hyrule he hadn't explored besides Snowpeak and he really, _really_, didn't want to go back there...

"The mountain? Well, to a certain point... That is to say there's a point where the rock goes straight up to an outcropping some ways up. No one's ever been able to get there. All the kids use to try. Why? You don't think there would be a secret dungeon-like area there, do you?" She smiled at him. "I know you must really want that sword, and I only told you what I did because of who you are. I'm sorry, but they really are just fairy tales."

"Yes... No... Of course. Thank you for the meal," replied Link, still deep in thought. As Link left the little house, the old woman sighed.

"Poor boy..."

Link exited the house. No matter what she said, he would at least try to get up there. He was sure that he could use his clawshots to climb the rock. After maybe five minutes of wandering around outside, he found what he was looking for. The cliff wall was flat and rough. About 10 meters up, the outcropping that the hermit had mentioned was just visible. Taking careful aim, he shot one of his clawshots at a little tree branch that had stubbornly grown just a bit to the left of where he wanted to go. As he puled the trigger, the claw shot out and attached itself to the branch. Releasing the trigger, he was propelled up and found himself, moments later, hanging onto the tree for dear life.

Concentrating, the Hero started swinging his body towards the small platform jutting out of the rock face. Hoping with all his might, he jumped, landing expertly on the ledge, and looked to the back of the cave.

The little old hermit nearly had a heart attack as a loud "YAAAAHOOOOO!" sounded through the village.

* * *

><p>Princess Zelda sat on her throne, wondering what Link was up to when she heard a sound that made her usually stoic face become alarmed. It was the sound of battle. Screams and thuds resounded outside the throne room, coming steadily closer. She got up, clutching the sword that had been forged for the royalty of the time and positioned her personal guards on either side of the door. To her, it seemed very much like when Zant had attacked and that feeling did not help.<p>

The sound of the fight got closer and closer and the Princess suddenly realized that while the unsheathing of swords could be heard, no sound of them clashing followed. Gulping, Zelda stared at the door. A moment of silence. "CRASH" The doors banged open and both of her faithful guards rushed at the single intruder that presented himself. While the royal guards were faithful, they were also dolefully under-trained. As they both charged and sliced downward, the intruder rolled forward and, with extreme agility, turned around and kicked the right guard straight in the head, knocking him out cold.

Then, before the other one could recover, he did something that did not seem possible. He jumped, high in the air and over the left guard's head. At the same time he grabbed his shoulders and, as he somersaulted back onto his feet, he threw the other man roughly into a pillar with such force that he, even with all his armor, did not get up.

The man straightened up and looked over to the resolved Princess, who gasped, properly looking at him for the first time. The man was nearly entirely covered in a dark gray cloak which covered everything except his eyes. These eyes were what made the mystery man truly odd, for they were orange. A fiery orange in which one could not help but see the ruthlessness of the man behind them. The black pupils at the center shone with perfect concentration and looking at them, one immediately knew that this person was not one to fool around with. He was tall, not too much so, but certainly taller than the petite Princess standing in front of the throne. Despite his cloak, one could tell of his muscular build and broad shoulders. His gloved hands lay as fists by his side and his feet were shoulder width, in a stance that clearly said "Fight me."

The Princess was about to demand he explain himself when the intruder did something completely unexpected. He relaxed and addressed her highness. "Well then, now that that's dealt with, let us talk."

**BUM BUM BUM! Who is this Mysterious man? I know, but I'm not going to tell you! Good luck guessing! (If someone actually guesses with only the information available at this point, I will literaly give them my... iPod I guess. I have nothing else of value) R&R, please!**


	3. Chapter 2: The Tenth Temple

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 2.**  
><strong>Now, then. this is a short chapter, my shortest even. However, my next one is the longest so it's a fair trade. Also, I spaced this chapter differently than the last two thanks to the helpful comment<strong>  
><strong>I recieved (thanks Gloxinia) so it should be more readable. For this actual chapter, I find it fair to warn you that it is cheesy. Very much so. My friendbeta reader-ish guy told me it was too cliché but I make use of ****everything later in the story so if you wonder "how?", just wait for later updates. Also, as you may come to notice, I love putting subtle references in my work. There are actually about five in this chapter alone and I challange someone to find all of them, though admittedly some are nearly impossible to find. Finally, I kinda find this chapter to go fast, but I'm working on that as a writer and hopefully will get better. Bear with me.**

**Disclamer: Do you really think I'm a milti-millionaire?**

Chapter 2: _The Tenth Temple_

Link was happier than he had been since before _she_ left. At the end of a small cave there was a large round door, similar to the ones in the first temple he ever entered: the forest temple in Faron province and while he could not know if it was indeed the right temple, he had a good feeling about it. Or maybe just blind hope... Approaching the door, he muttered a short prayer to the goddesses then pushed it open.

He gasped. The room was huge, HUGE! Much larger than even the Master Sword's chamber by the entrance to the temple of time. But it was empty except for a gigantic stone sculpture of a sword that looked exactly like the one he had strapped on his back. Under this was a small epitaph graven into black marble. As he approached it, he heard the door slam shut behind him but it didn't worry him, for he did not plan to leave without his prize. Approaching the statue, he noticed that the text was much longer than it had seemed at first. It read:

"Beware stranger, for by entering this sacred temple you have sealed your fate. No man may leave until they have passed the three challenges designed and created by the Hero of old. They are made to test your courage, wisdom and heart but be warned, for these task are not for the fainthearted. However if you truly manage to pass these trials, you shall be rewarded with the artifact placed within the last room, the Dark Sword. Good luck and goodbye."

And, as soon as the last words were read, the statue faded, leaving Link stranded in a room with a single locked door leading back out of the dungeon.

Not sure what to do, Link sat down and thought about the message. According to it, there would be three challenges: courage, wisdom and heart. Logically, to proceed, he would need to pass one of these tests, but which would come first... As he thought, he heard a noise. Raising his head, he jumped to his feet in surprise. He was looking at himself. But he was different. His skin was pure black and his eyes glowed red. Instead of being clothed in green, he had a uniform made also of black.

He smiled, showing pointy teeth, and took out his sword. Link scrambled to his feet, also pulling out his weapon, which seemed to be getting heavier every time he unsheathed it. His copy smiled.

"Don't even bother," he spoke, his voice full of the promise of hurt. "I am you. I know all your moves. You can't defeat me." Pulling out his shield, Link unleashed a spin attack, hoping to knock the creepy copy to the ground, but his doppelganger blocked it easily.

"A spin attack? Really? How weak" he commented before going on the offensive.

Ten minutes later, Link was panting heavily. He had barely managed to get two or three attacks in and his opponent had blocked them all easily. He had lost track of how many times he had just _barely_ succeeded in avoiding getting sliced in half or disemboweled. His enemy seemed to truly know all of his moves, even the ones taught to him by the Hero's spirit during his adventure.

With a final strike, he lost the Master Sword as it went spinning through the air and landed with a clatter on the other side of the room.

"Ha ha ha... Run, little Link, nothing can save you now!" laughed the dark man. The Hero looked around and realized the truth. There was no way he could retrieve his sword before he was sliced in half and his shield would not hold forever. Facing his doom, he stood tall and closed his eyes, waiting for the blow to fall and thinking not of his failure, but of all the good times he had spent with Midna during his quest. _Midna_... Surprisingly, he didn't feel anything. Opening his eyes again, he noticed that the stranger was gone and that a door had appeared on the far wall. Gathering up his sword, he made his way through the door and into the next room.

The second room was exactly the same as the first and, to the astonishment of the Hero, the statue of the Master Sword stood at its center. He approached the statue and once again heard he door lock behind him. Not worried, he set forth to read the epitaph which had changed since he last saw it. It now read:

"Congratulations on completing the first task. Your courage is pure for even in the face of certain defeat, you did not give up hope and even in what you believed to be the last moments of your life, did not dwell on what you would change, but what you would keep the same. Remember this, courage is not only taking up arms to face a dangerous enemy, but also confidence and being ready to accept what fate the goddesses have chosen for you. As you may have guessed, the second task will test your wisdom. To proceed, answer this riddle: As the lord of evil descended upon Hyrule, the great Hero of time was born. Unto it he blew life to save all he held dear. And as the Goddesses music flowed through the world, the Hero of time saved the sacred land twice. What is it? You have five minutes..."

"Five minutes?" Link wondered, "What does it mean by fi-" A rumbling noise sounded from the ceiling and as he looked up, Link saw large spikes slowly emerging and lowering to eventually impale him. "Oh..."

* * *

><p>Zelda starred at the intruder with mingled surprise and outrage. "You dare come in here, kill my guards then ask for a conversation?"<p>

"Yes, well, firstly, they're not dead. Secondly, I wouldn't have if it was not a matter of extreme urgency concerning the Hero chosen by the goddesses and his current quest to find the Dark Sword..."

"That does not excuse- wait, what was that?" The Princess stared at the strange man, who had still not revealed his face. How in Hyrule did this random stranger know such secret information? Determined to find out what he wanted, she straightened her dress and spoke anew. "I do not know how you know of his current predicament, but I assure you that he is able to fend for himself, wherever he may be. He was not chosen for nothing, you know..."

"It has nothing to do with being chosen, the Dark Sword was not hidden simply for the thrill of doing so, it contains an evil power."

"We are aware that it can reconstruct evil relics and such, our legends told us that much."

"Did they say nothing more?"

"No. Why should they?"

"You don't know! We've, we've, we've got to stop him!" Zelda stared incredulously as the orange-eyed man took out a piece of parchment from an inside pocket and began looking around for a pen.

"Just who _are _you?" she almost whispered. The intruder stopped dead in his tracks and answered:

"That's for me to know and you to never find out. I will say this though, I know enough about such things that it would be in your, Link's and even Midna's best intentions to, well, keep my advice in mind..."

Zelda's jaw dropped, causing her unwanted visitor to smile again (though Zelda could not see it for his face was ever hidden) before she quickly closed it.

"Very well, but I will send the letter, he will pay more attention to it than a random stranger writing to him. Oh, and by the way," she added in an attempt to make him reveal his face, "It's impolite to speak to a lady with a hood on..."

An unseen smirk.

"I'm sure you'll learn to live with it. Nice try, though." Still wondering whether or not this odd man could be trusted, she set about writing a letter telling Link to come back to the castle immediately. If what the intruder said was true, she hoped it reached him before he got the sword.

A few minutes later, as she had just finished signing her name, she noticed one of her guards starting to stir. Obviously, her "guest", whom she had decided to call Mr. Mysterious for now, had also noticed.

"I'd love to stay, but I doubt they would be too happy about that. I'll be back when Link returns, until then your highness," and he jumped out of an open window.

Zelda could not believe her eyes! They were near the top of the castle, did he just kill himself? She ran over to the window, expecting to see the crumpled figure of Mr. Mysterious lying on the ground. However, to her disbelief, there was nothing. Not a trace of him even landing on the hard ground far below. Wondering if it was all just a dream, but not wanting to take any chances, she told her now-awake guards to fetch the mailman while she sat back down on the throne, pondering the words of the intruder.

* * *

><p>Link was pacing randomly around the room, brow furrowed in concentration and fear, sweat running freely down his neck. He was no good at riddles! He had the Triforce of courage, not wisdom! Looking up, he realized he probably had less than a minute left. Frantically, he went over the riddle yet again, trying to concentrate, which wasn't easy.<p>

"_As the lord of evil descended upon Hyrule." _That could only be Ganondorf...

"_The great Hero of time was born."_ That was him, or one of his past lives.

"_Unto it he blew life to save all he held dear."_ That was the riddle part.

"_And as the Goddesses__'__ music flowed through the world, the Hero of time saved the sacred land twice."_ This was the confusing part.

What did the goddesses have to do with music? As far as he knew, none of them were said to play a certain instrument. As he paced around the room yet again, he found himself crouching to avoid the spikes, which did not improve his mood.

"Let's see," he thought. What about the other Hero's adventures? Link thought back to the stories Rusl used to tell him as a child about the legendary Hero of time: one sailed over the sea to save the Princess, one separated into four, one stopped the moon from crashing into Hyrule and yet another traveled through time to stop Ganondorf.

Wait! That last one... The lord of evil descended, that's Ganondorf. The Hero of time was born, and... And... How did he stop him? He was now walking on his knees to avoid being trans-pierced.

"The Hero of time had a very special item," Rusl had said. "It was a musical instrument that allowed him to travel through time called an..."

"Ocarina!" Link shouted, hoping that that was indeed the answer, for he would not have time to come up with another answer before... But he was worrying for nothing for as soon as the word left his mouth, the spikes stopped short, then disappeared and another door was revealed. The statue was gone again.

Sighing heavily and wiping his sweaty forehead, Link advanced toward the next door. Intent, despite the difficulty of the past two challenges, to complete the last one and claim the Dark Sword to rejoin his beloved Midna in the twilight. Hardly containing his happiness, he pushed open the final door. Not to his surprise, he found himself in a room exactly like the two previous ones.

In the center, of course, stood the grandiose statue. It's text had once again changed. Used to it by now, he advanced and, as the door locked behind him, began to read.

"Congratulations on beating the second task. Remember, wisdom is achievable by all. The true challenge lies in it's use in the face of fire or, as in this case, certain death. You have but one task left to complete. The test of the heart. I suggest you find solace in the now and present, for when I created this task, I made it in such a way as to break my enemy's will. Only those pure of heart can survive this challenge. Let us begin..." And before Link could do so much as unsheathe the Master Sword, darkness consumed him.

Link open his eyes and chaos surrounded him. He was in the Twilight, but far from being a beautiful, hypnotic place, it was engulfed in war. A huge battle played out around him. Twilight soldier's cries mixed with those of an unknown race of dark warriors as they slaughtered each other on an open battlefield. But this gruesome scene was not the object of the Hero's attention.

Behind the Twilight soldiers' lines was the palace. High upon the roof stood two people, fighting with swords and magic. An unknown foe and none other than... Midna. Link tried to run and help them but could not move through the massive armies fighting to the death. Hearing a scream, he looked back up, terrified. The enemy stood with their sword stabbed straight through her heart, and through his.

"No!" He cried. "No! It can't be! I don't believe it!" He cried out in desperation. Tears flowing down his cheeks. "I won't let it!" He yelled to the sky as Midna fell. Falling... Falling... Until she hit the ground, out of view of the Hero for the two armies still clashing under the endless sky. Link knelt down on the blood-soaked ground and cried for what seemed like forever.

"Enough," he said. "I know this is just an illusion! I am not it the Twilight and none of this is happening, nor will it ever. Now bring me back!" As he glared up at the twilit sky, it faded back to the first and, Link now suspected, only room.

The statue was in the center and the door leading outside was once again unlocked. The statue, however, was slightly different. It was no longer a statue, but an actual sword set in stone. The epitaph was short this time. It read:

"The future is always in motion... Use it well."

Link, no longer smiling, grabbed the hilt with both hands and pulled out the Dark Sword.

The blade slid out with a resounding slice. He noticed that the stone around it seemed cracked and frayed, as though the power deeply entwined in the sword had leaked somehow. As he examined it, he noticed that it was an exact replica of the Master Sword except that the blade itself was completely black and there was an outline of dark fire running around it. It's hilt was not the mauve of the Master Sword, but was a gloomy shade of gray and the jewel in the hilt seemed to be made of black smoke.

Eager to further examine his newest acquisition, but even more eager to get back to the castle and sleep, he opened the door, stepped outside and began the trek back to the main road to call Epona.

**You just got: The Dark Sword! *music* R&R please!**


	4. Chapter 3: A Link to the Twilight

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 3.  
>WARNING: The following text contains an <em>unintentional<em> "arrow to the knee" joke which I swear I only noticed when my friend pointed it out to me. Please don't kill me for it.  
><strong>**OMG people are actually reading this! Every time I get a "story alert" e-mail, a warm bubble appears in my heart. Thanks to Shadowman 747 for his awesomeness! I try my best to serve the people.  
>Anyway, Zelda and Link might seem a bit OOC in this chapter, hopefully it won't hurt the story for you. It is admittidly the most comedious chapter I've written, even though I'm not that good at writting humor. That said, this is my longest chapter so far (9 pages!), so have fun!<strong>

**Disclaimer: I'm not even old enough to legally own a copyright...**

Chapter 3: _A Link to the Twilight_

The mailman ran with all haste across the fields. According to the Princess, this might be his most important delivery yet. He was to find the Hero of Time and personally deliver her letter into his hands only. He had half a mind to open it and read it, just to see what could possibly be so important, but he did not for two reasons.

First of all, he took the privacy of his clients seriously. _Very_ seriously. "Secondly," he thought, now running over the bridge, "Considering the rumors circulating about her majesty and the Hero, I suspects whatever she has to say is..._ Private..._" Besides, he couldn't wait to show off the new official mailman jingle he had written to boost business. Finally spotting a green-clad horseman, he yelled "MR. LINK!"

As Link rode his steed out of a rickety stone section of the path, he heard someone call out his name in an annoyingly familiar voice. That accursed mailman was back. He sighed, too wiped out from his previous trials to complain as the object of his hatred jogged into view.

"Hey Mr. Link, I have a letter for you! It's a letter from Princess Zelda, for your eyes only." Now this was different... Why would Zelda write him a letter? She knew were he was and when he would return, so what purpose would it serve?

Unless something bad had happened in the short time he was away... Nervous, Link took the envelop bearing the royal seal from the other guy's hand and thanked him for delivering it. "Before I leave, allow me to present to you the Hyrule Mail Service's official song!" Link stared open-mouthed as he cleared his throat and began to sing in the most horrible voice he had ever heard. He must have been worst that Ilia!

"_Through rain and snow, through sleet and hail,  
><em>_I deliver to you the daily mail.  
><em>_You'll never live to see the day,  
><em>_When bokoblins will block my way."_

As Link cringed at the sound of the "singing", the mailman smiled widely, then scampered off to his next delivery. Wondering what he had done to the goddesses to deserve this, he stopped Epona, laid down the Dark Sword (he had been carrying it in his hands due to his lack of scabbard) and opened the letter. His eyes widened as he read the familiar, carefully written handwriting of his friend. It said:

_Oh great Hero,_

_I hope this correspondence finds you in good health and, more importantly, _before_ you find the Dark Sword. Many circumstances have changed since you left not so long ago and they require immediate attention. I cannot say all that I would like in this letter, for it must not be intercepted. Therefore, I simply must ask you to return to the castle in all haste. There is someone you need to meet who claims to have vital information concerning your current goal. I feel it fair to warn you in advance that the person you must meet may seem a little strange. I, personally, am not sure what to think of him. We will be waiting._

_Yours truly,_

_Princess Zelda_

Astonished, and a bit worried, Link reread the letter a few times. It was a little too late to not get the Dark Sword and according to what Zelda had written, it was imperative he not get it. What did she mean? Did she change her mind and decide it was too risky to recreate the mirror? If so, he didn't care. He would go to the castle, but no matter what was said he _would_ go directly to the mirror chamber afterward and he _would_ return to the Twilight. On the other hand, if something else was wrong...

He shuddered to think of what it could be. From the mood in the letter, it had to be something extremely important. Then there was this stranger. All she had said was that he was a bit odd. She hadn't even mentioned a name. Why? For security reasons? Or simply because she didn't know it? Or maybe even she just didn't consider it.

Any way, he would have to first return to the castle and speak to her. Sighing from exhaustion, he climbed back on Epona and, head buzzing with questions, theories and unwanted memories of the last test, he urged her forwards towards the setting sun and the mighty castle in the distance.

* * *

><p>Having just finished leaving Epona in the less-than-capable hands of a young stable boy, Link hurried up the great central staircase towards the throne room. It was past sundown but, according to a night guard outside the gates, the Princess was still up and waiting for his return. Wishing nothing more than to flop down on his comfortable palace bed and sleep for seven years, he made himself alert and ready, then knocked on the large, carving-adorned oak doors.<p>

He heard a rustle on the other side. "Link? Link! You're back! Please, do come in!" readying himself for the certain outburst he was about to endure for getting the dark weapon, he pushed open the large doors and walked into the throne room. The Princess stood in front of her throne, looking _very_ tired. "Thank goodness you're ba-" she began, only to suddenly cut off as she saw what he was carrying in his hand.

"WHAT!" she practically screamed and Link closed the door to prevent waking the other resident of the castle. "You got it? Didn't you get my letter? Why did you- When did you..." She trailed off, groaning to herself.

"Sorry," replied Link. "I only got the letter after I already had the sword, I didn't know..."

"Oh, its fine... I don't blame you, it's just that _he_'s bound to be upset."

"_He _who?"

"_He,_ the mystery man"

"Oh, yeah. Were is he anyway? You said he would be here..."

"I don't know..." she sighed. "He said he would come back when you returned then jumped out the window."

As they talked, neither of them noticed a subtle, shadowy figure seemingly glide over the tiled floor until.

"Looking for me?" said a deep, powerful voice right behind Zelda, who shrieked, tumbling forwards and tripping on her skirt only to have Link gallantly catch her before she truly fell.

"Don't DO that!" she cried, trying to catch her breath.

The shadowy figure chuckled. "Won't you be so kind as to introduc- wait, what's that in your hand?" he said, staring as the black hilt.

Link stared at the man and, seemingly deeming him safe, reveal the entire Dark Sword. The stranger froze. Glaring at Link for what seemed like an eternity before turning his back and sighing loudly.

"This is, truly very, very, extremely uncool... Now that you have the Dark Sword in hand, there is no stopping fate. I'm sorry for having you stay up so late, but it there is no longer anything we can do tonight. I will explain more in the morning." The stranger strode towards the window, but just before he jumped, Link called after him.

"Wait! How did you get inside the room without being seen?" The intruder smiled.

"Magic," he answered, letting himself fall backwards over the windowsill. Link started, running over to the edge.

"Don't bother..." said Zelda, let's just go to bed..." In light of the events that happened that day, Link was only too happy to comply. He considered for a moment confiding the vision of the last trial to Zelda, but decided against it.

"I mean, it was just an illusion, right?" he thought to himself as he bade her royal highness goodnight. Being as tired as he was, he simply threw himself fully clothed onto the bed and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>The following morning, Link rose late. He had been so tired the day before that he must have slept well into the afternoon. Blinking tiredly, he got up and ran through his daily stretches. As he washed his face, he began smiling rather foolishly, thinking about what he was going to do today. He knew the ride to the mirror chamber would be long, but being able to see Midna again would make it all worth it. Feeling as if nothing could spoil his good mood, he made his way out of his room and began the walk to the throne room.<p>

When he arrived in front of the doors, he took a deep breath. He wasn't nervous about seeing Zelda, but the stranger made him uneasy. How was it possible for someone to know so much about him, his quest and the Twilight? Why did he regret him obtaining the Dark Sword? Why did he refuse to show his face? And how, oh how, did he do all his so-called "magic"? He didn't trust that man...

Putting his concerns aside, he knocked on the large wooden doors, then entered. The Princess was sitting on her large throne, muttering instructions to a servant. On the left side of the room, next to the window he was so fond of jumping out of, stood the orange-eyed man. There was something different about him though. He now had a sword of his own, which was sheathed in an delicate, gold-plated scabbard on his waist.

The hilt of his sword was black and gray, much like that of the Dark Sword, except it was much larger and lacked the curved guards, sporting instead two straight ones with two spikes coming out vertically on either end. Smiling as she noticed Link, the monarch gently dismissed her servant and summoned both men up to her. Instead of her usual, white garb, she sported a cloak not unlike the one he had first met her in at the beginning of his journey, which was odd considering her political position.

"You said you had something to explain to us this morning," she stated calmly. "If you have no objection, I suggest you explain it to us on the way to the Arbiter's Grounds, for it would be excellent if we could arrive there before nightfall." Link stared.

"You're coming? Your majesty, that is really not necessary. I wouldn't even think of taking you away from your people."

"Unfortunately, Hero, it is necessary. I know you're doing this to reunite with Midna," the stranger gave a barely perceptible start. "But you are also opening contact with an entire realm full of people and as such, you need a high-ranking diplomat. And if Midna is as you describe her, a normal, snooty, protocol-obsessed maniac will only get in the way. She knows you and has met me several times, so there shouldn't be any problems. Might I also remind you that yes, I may be the Princess of the Kingdom, but it is also yours as you are the one who saved it, the legendary Hero."

Link sighed, considering arguing the point but too eager to get going to actually protest.

"Fine, but what about _him_, do you really think he should come? As you pointed out, it's very serious business and those uninvolved should stay so." He said, staring pointedly at the other man. The piercing orange eyes stared at him in mock shock.

"What. You think I can't handle it? I've only been there, what, perhaps a dozen times..."

The two hylians stared. "But enough about me. I don't mind storytelling while riding, so let us go." He strode away (to the window, again) calling back "I'll be waiting at the town gates, don't take _too_ long." Desperately wanting to know more, the other two hustle out of the room in the direction of the stables.

"Don't worry about Hyrule, I was explaining to that servant what story to tell the people about why we weren't present and, if I do say so myself, it should keep them busy," explained Zelda as they hurried out of the castle proper and into the courtyard.

"Oh really? What did you say?"

_Flashback_

"_No, it's not true! I'm just telling you to say this to stop the council from bickering."  
><em>_"Whatever you say madam. And where are you going for your honeymoon?"  
>"I'm <em>pretending_ to go to a secret mansion in the Snowpeak region"  
>"So you're going to a hidden cottage in the middle of nowhere with the chosen Hero for an undetermined amount of time."<br>"I'm pretending to"  
>"Right, I'll say that..."<br>"And whatever you do, _don't tell Link_"  
>"Why not?"<br>"Because- oh! Here he is! Go on, I need to talk to him."  
>"Who's the other guy?"<br>"Um... A new adviser. Go away."  
>"Of course, your highness."<em>

_End flashback_

"Oh," said Zelda as they finally reached the stables, "Nothing much, really... It's not important. Let's hurry."

"Riiiiiight..."

Reaching the stables, the Princess announced that the current stable masters should prepare the royal horse and the Hero's noble steed. Bringing them out, the man in charge asked when they could expect them to return.

"I'm not sure."

The man's eyes widened as he looked unashamedly from the Zelda to Link who, fortunately, was too busy feeding Epona a carrot to notice. Slightly stunned, the stable master gave her the reins of her shockingly white stallion and stumbled off to his office in the back. Nervous and ready to leave before encountering more people, Zelda quickly motioned Link to straddle his horse and they were off.

Since they, or at least Zelda, were keen to not be seen, the pair traveled along backstreets and alleyways and received very few curious glances. Hopefully, not many of the people who had noticed them realized she was the Princess for she had, upon departure, lowered her hood so as to hide the most of her face possible.

Finally reaching the gates, they spotted "Mr. Mysterious" waiting outside on a jet-black, fast-looking warhorse, waiting for them in the shade of a tree. Spotting them, he stirred his mount in their direction and off they were, Link in the lead, towards Lake Hylia.

"Well," began Zelda, as they sped to a trot. "We're waiting." The man chuckled, in Link's opinion, evilly.

"Very well, let us begin."

"The Master Sword, unlike what common history will tell us, was not created by the sages, but by an ancient and powerful sorceress who's name is unknown. It was used, at the time, by the very first Hero, to seal away an evil power unlike any the world has ever seen. Even more powerful than Ganondorf. It's true form was given birth thanks to the sacred flames of the goddesses that the original Hero earned by passing certain trials.

Now, if we backtrack to the beginning of time, the great Nayru stated in her infinite wisdom that for there to be peace, the world's power must always be balanced between good and evil. Thus, when the evil spirit of old was born, so was the Hero, who could bring the world back to peace. This is why, when the Master Sword was finally complete, another blade was created. A blade with dark powers known as the Dark Sword.

For many years, this sword was hidden, it's incredible power untapped, until the son of the Hero found it. At first, he believed it to be nothing but an ordinary sword, simply crafted with an unknown material, but he was wrong. Luckily, he realized his error before anything bad happened. Knowing that the sword mustn't be in close contact with the population, but assuming that it might be needed again someday, he decided to hide it.

Now, you may be wondering "how in the world does he know all this?" and I can see in your faces that I'm right. Well, it just so happens that the Hero's son enlisted the help of his most trusted assistant to aid him in the task of hiding he Dark Sword so as to make sure that only someone good would be able to retrieve it. That assistant was my ancestor. The reason he was chosen for the job was that apart from being the most loyal servant to the royal family, he was also adept at magic.

Together, the Hero's offspring and my ancestor sealed the Dark Sword in a large cave in a mountain a fair distance from the city. Knowing that despite the protections put in place around the sword there would be need of living protectors, my forebearer decided to stay nearby and protect it. Training certain, trusted guards in the most intense ways possible, there soon grew to be a small village where the sword lay, hidden. The residents of the "village" eventually became known as the Sheikah, who were the helpers of the goddess who created the original, unimproved version of the Master Sword.

The guards were never told what they were protecting and, with the death of my ancestor and the Hero's son, there was only one person alive who knew of it. My ancestor's son. He knew that if the knowledge of the Dark Sword was kept to a oral level, it would no longer exist by the time it was needed again. Thus, he wrote two books. One was implanted in secret in the royal library, that was the book you found, and the other was handed down, father-to-son, until it came to me.

That book contains the _true_ story of what happened. Obviously, my ancestor's son did not believe certain rumors... You see, the reason that I disapproved of you obtaining the Dark Sword is that in said book, it is mentioned that while no physical manifestations occurred, there was a rumor that an evil spirit resided within the sword and that it was fighting to get out.

This is the reason it was turned to stone. As long as it remained in the stone, the spirit could not, in theory, get out. However, because these rumors are unfounded, there is no reason to believe in them. None-the-less, I would have preferred to leave the Dark Sword where it was, just in case. Therefore, Link, I urge you to use the Dark Sword as little as possible in favor of the Blessed Blade."

"I would," Link said, interrupting for what seemed like the first time in hours. "But for some reason it seems _really_ heavy all of a sudden..."

"Obviously. The Master Sword has but one purpose, which is to aid the chosen Hero defeat an evil enemy. Since there are none of those left, the sword would normally return to it's resting place. However, in our current circumstances, that isn't happening.

It is merely a sign that you are not suppose to overuse it's power. It will keep getting heavier until returned to it's home. When we arrive at the Arbiter's Grounds, I can lend you another sword for personal use until I leave."

Zelda, still absorbing the news, asked "That is all well, but it still does not explain how you knew that Link was going to get it now, nor how you supposedly have voyaged to the Twilight realm in the past."

"Indeed. Not to be rude, but there's a reason I didn't broach that subject. It is a secret. Thus, I will never tell. Actually, there's nothing more, really, to say. Which is good because we've arrived at the lake."

So deeply preoccupied were they, that the other two had not noticed that the trio had stopped outside the familiar (at least to Link) cucco gliding game house. The stranger, apparently, had also been there before because he followed Link confidently into the building while the Princess trailed behind. Unsure of what they were doing in a place like this. Walking down a small indoor slope, Link grabbed a cucco and advanced to talk to an odd-looking clown-man who stood in a doorway leading out of the "house" and into... Nothing.

As Link approached, the clown-man spoke: "Well, hi there! Welcome to Falbi's Flight-by-Fowl. Are you ready for a flight full of dreams and sweet, sweet bonuses? A cucco-powered ride around Lake Hylia? You will LOVE it! Next up for fantastication: ONE BIG GUY- wait, you're three. Right then, that's 60 rupees for three tickets to the isle of riches. How about it, partners?"

The stranger strode in between the two men.

"I have a better idea," he said, partly unsheathing his sword revealing a slightly golden blade. "How about either we go down, or _you_ do," he finished, glaring down at the man.

"O-O-O-Of course s-sir, that seems perfectly f-f-fair. Hehehe..." Said the clown, trembling from head to toe as the stranger glowered down at him. Gulping loudly, he scurried off. Practically running up a ladder on the far side of the room and quickly leaving the house.

"That was _not_ necessary," said the Hero sternly. "I would have paid."

"Bah, whatever. It's not like he's poor or anything..." The Princess, wishing to avoid an argument interrupted with a question of her own.

"How are we suppose to reach Lake Hylia from here?" Link smiled evilly at her from the ledge.

"Like this," and he jumped.

Zelda watched in horror as he guided himself onto a small, square island in the middle of the lake. Once he had landed, he looked up to the house and waved.

"There is _no_ _way_ I'm doing that. Forget it."

"Aw, don't be such a pampered princess," said the stranger turning around and looking at her. "You'll have fun once the ride starts," and with that, he grabbed her arm and jumped into the void.

"AAAAAAAAAAAOMGAAAAAAAAAH!" she screamed as they fell to what she was sure to be their doom. He had, after all, not even taken a cucco. As they approached the island where Link was standing, watching with trepidation as the stranger whom they had dared trust guide the needed Princess of Hyrule to her death, Zelda dared open her eyes, wanting to see the clear blues skies one more time before...

She didn't have that chance. The only thing visible were the stranger's hate-filled eyes. Then, to her astonishment, they began to glow red. She didn't have any time to examine this, however, and as the distance between them and the ground closed she flinched, closing her eyes, waiting for impact. It never came.

Zelda opened her eyes. She was clinging to the still-hooded stranger who was standing tall on a patch of land a few yards away from another house that was floating on logs a little ways into the lake. She released her hold on the man and tried to stand. Beside her, she heard the Hero yelling at Mr. Mysterious.

"ARE YOU INSANE? YOU COULD HAVE KILLED THE BOTH OF YOU!"

"Not a chance, I have never, ever missed a jump."

"THAT'S NOT THE POINT! YOU, YOU, AAAARGH! Fine. Let's... Let's just... move on."

The trio approached the floating house, Zelda a little unstable due to the recent events. As Link began speaking to another oddly dressed man, she turned on the man beside her.

"Never, _never_, do that again."

"What, didn't enjoy it?" replied the stranger as Link paid the man, who then opened the door of his house and went to a lever attached to the side of said house.

"NO. I thought I was going to die!"

"Then you're gonna _love_ this," he answered, shoving her through the door, which slammed shut behind her.

Link was glaring daggers at the whistling stranger as Flyer cranked up his cannon and Zelda's worried voice could be heard through the door.

"Hey! What do you think you're doing? Let me out of here! Hmmm, why does this look like the inside of a cannon? ... NO! ABSOLUTLY NOT! LET ME OUT OF HERE"

_BOOM_

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Flyer turned around. "So, who's next?"

"We'll both go," said Link quickly, not wanting to chance leaving the Princess with the stranger alone for more than no time at all.

"So be it. Step right in, fellers." 30 seconds later, they were flying through the air.

When they came crashing down to the ground in the desert, the stranger somehow managing to fall on his feet, Link immediately set off to where Zelda was kneeling a few meters to the left to make sure she was okay.

In the end, since it was almost sundown, they decided to camp out at the edge of the desert for the night. A contributing factor to the decision might have been that Zelda was paralyzed, refusing to move and twitching every now and then. So after a frugal meal of dried meats and fruits, which only the two hylians ate, Link stood watch over their "camp" while the others slept. When the time came to change guards, the stranger gladly woke and took over while the Hero got his sleep, promising to wake him if there was any trouble.

* * *

><p>The following morning, once Zelda could move again, the trio set off. Link and the Princess followed Mr. Mysterious at a safe distance since she was still scared out of her mind of him. She was not only regretting having let him come, she also was convinced that he was in no way someone to trust if ever there was trouble, which there was sure to be if just the smallest thing went wrong.<p>

As mid-day neared, they approached the exit from the desert into the more rocky area that preceded the the prison. They had been traveling in the recessed sections scattered a bit everywhere in order to avoid the miniscule scorpion-like creatures that roamed the sandy seas. As the they reached the end of the vein, the stranger abruptly stopped and motioned his companions to be quiet. Glancing at each other, they hurried forwards to see what was wrong.

They immediately saw the problem. The outpost set up by the bulblins that Link had defeated on his first passage through the desert was now back up and fully functioning. Not only that, but it seemed as though there were even more towers than before.

"Well, I'm sure you two can handle the archers. I'll get the boars," commented the stranger, setting off playfully in broad daylight over to the small group of boar-riders.

"Geez, so much for strategy... Well, I think I can get them all with my bow, just stay close, alright?" said the Hero, as he began running, crouched over, to the many towers scattered around.

As they approached the towers, Link took out the Hero's bow and, with Zelda crouching beside him, shot an arrow at the closest bulblin archer. That was a mistake. As the arrow pieced it's heart, it let out a mighty shriek, causing all the others to turn around. Noticing the two intruders, they drew their own bows and let them have it. Link immediately took out his shield to block the arrows, but realized at the last moment that he could not cover both himself and the Princess.

Since the green man was the one who had shot one of their kind, the bulblins first shots were directed solely at him. However, upon seeing that he could block all of them with his shield, one of them had the brilliant idea of shooting the other one who couldn't defend herself. As Link turned, he saw the arrow zooming towards her.

"WATCH OUT!" he yelled, but it was too late. The arrow was nearly upon her and all she could do was stare as the point that would pierce her came closer at far too quick a pace.

Then, as the arrow was about to rob her of life, a slicing sound was heard and the glint of a golden blade in the sun could be seen. The archers stopped. Link stopped. And, as though in slow motion, the hooded figure of the stranger brought his sword back up as the two halves of the arrow he had just cut fell to the ground.

The Princess's mouth fell open. "Did he just save my life?" she thought. "Scratch that, did he just cut a _flying_ arrow in two?"

"Link, shoot them down! I'll block the incoming ones!" he yelled in an uncharacteristically serious voice and getting into position as the bulblins began resuming fire. The Hero hesitated for barely a moment, looking around and seeing ten dead boars, before dropping his shield and retaking his bow.

The fight was amazing, Link thought. Before him, with unnatural speed and accuracy, his companion deflected all the arrows that came his way. With nothing stopping him, he shot down their enemies in record time. At the end, the deflector turned around and looked at the pair of them. He was about to speak when something caught Link's eye. He had missed one.

"LOOK O-" he began, raising his bow again, but it was too late. The arrow sped right under the cloaked man's arm and stabbed deeply into the Princess's knee. She let out a scream of pain as she collapsed on her back. As Link dispatched the bulblin with a clean headshot, the unnamed one threw his sword aside and knelled next to the writhing Princess.

"Link, hold her down. I need her to stop moving."

"What? What are trying to do?"

"Just _do_ it!" Hoping beyond hope that he would help her, Link also knelled down beside her and tried to restrain her arms.

"This may hurt..." said Mr. Mysterious, laying his hands over the wound on either side of the arrow. Zelda stopped struggling against Link for barely a second as she eyed the man apprehensively. The next thing she knew, she was feeling a numbness spreading from the arrow sticking out of her leg and reaching from her toes to her fingertips, blocking out most of the pain. Looking up again, she saw that the stranger's eyes, as during the descent to Lake Hylia, were glowing red and this time, so were his hands.

Link was astonished, to say the least, as the strange man's eyes and hands began to glow a reddish hue. As he let go of Zelda, since she was no longer attempting to escape anyways, the stranger began to speak.

"Realr mo fhadows si nhit swilight touh rxcepe tm yous lna drang teh rowep"

It was more of a chant, really, as he repeated it over and over without so much as stopping for breath. He had never before heard the language in which he spake, but it reminded him a little of the way Midna use to talk.

Then, before their very eyes, the arrow was ripped out of her knee and, despite the numbness she felt, the Princess let out another scream of pain. Quickly, Link resumed holding her down as the stranger kept chanting and soon, a new feeling engulfed her. Is was not a particularly pleasant feeling, but it was not _un_pleasant either. To her, it felt a bit like she was trying to stretch her leg, but for some reason could not. To both hylians' amazement, her knee seemed to be healing at an unnaturally fast rate. Before their eyes, her skin mended itself and, in the space of a few seconds, the only mark left was a slightly red spot on the knee and a dull ache.

Slowly, the red faded from Mr. Mysterious' eyes and hands but, before the Princess could do so much as thank him, he was slammed backwards, rocketing over the sand until his back slammed into one of the uneven wooden towers, then slumping to the ground. After standing in shock for a bit, Link and Zelda ran over to were Mr. Mysterious (or MM for short) was climbing unsteadily to his feet.

"Are you alright?" asked Link, looking worried as MM got up.

"I'm fine," he grunted, stretching his back. " I just forgot how painful the repercussions of a healing spell could be on me..."

"Wait," said Zelda. "That was magic?" MM rolled his eyes.

"Nooooo, it was just some powdered reekfish."

"No need to be so sarcastic about it! There just aren't any magic users around here. Most of our magical essence was transferred to the Twilight and most of what's left resides in myself and I couldn't heal an injury like that."

"You know, I had a question about that," said MM as he limped forwards towards the continuation of the trail. "Why are we walking to the mirror chamber if I could just warp us there?" There was dead silence. Zelda turned around, fire burning in her eyes.

"You. Could. Have. _Warped _us there?" More silence.

"...Maybe"

"I. WILL. _KILL _YOU!" yelled Zelda, charging forward at MM, who cringed. Then the blows started landing.

"I FELL OFF A CLIFF!" she yelled, whacking him repeatedly in the face. "I WAS BLASTED OUT OF A CANNON!" she continued, now punching him in the stomach. "AND I WAS SHOT IN THE KNEE BY AN ARROW AND THE WHOLE TIME YOU COULD HAVE WARPED US?" Enraged, the Princess continued pommeling MM. Her eyes were those of a crazed murderer and Link, not wanting to let MM get killed (if only because he could warp them and bypass the desert temple) was forced to tackle the Princess and half strangle her as he tried to explain why they shouldn't kill him.

As Zelda began to lack air, she finally stopped trying to move in favor of clutching at her throat, which Link promptly released. As Zelda regained her wind, Link looked around. He expected to see MM down on the ground, out cold or maybe dead. To his stunned surprise however, he seemed to be standing and not only that, but looking absolutely fine. Furthermore, he found himself standing in no other place than the mirror chamber itself.

"Uhhh... What happened? How did we get here? Why are you not dead?"

"Well, to answer you first question, I warped us here to avoid getting killed. To answer your second question... Well I kind of already did. And for the third question it's simple. Those hits were nowhere near strong enough to hurt me."

"Wait, let me get this straight. You can withstand the wrath of Princess Zelda but you can't _heal_ her without being seriously hurt?" he added, noting he was still limping slightly. The man chuckled.

"Because of who I am, there are certain rules I have to follow... Not that you'll ever understand. Anyway, let's get this show on the road."

Link stared at him quizzically then, understanding what he meant, took out the Dark Sword and approached the the mirror's former frame.

"What am I supposed to do now?" he asked. MM thought for a moment, during which Zelda managed to catch her breath and was getting to her feet.

"Well, if I am correct, there is a magic phrase that will activate the sword's power. However, since you are the one using the sword, you will have to be the one to activate it." As he spoke, Zelda closed in on him.

"Don't think this is over. We will talk about this again. And _soon_..." She said in a, if possible for a member of the royal family, downright evil voice.

"Whatever you say, milady. Now then, the magic words are "Ru ta des tu valoomes". Your turn."

Link was ready. He could feel his heart beat with excitement. In just a few moment, he would recreate the portal to the Twilight and he would be able to see Midna again. In complete confidence, he raised the Dark Sword to the sky and and said in the most powerful voice he could muster:

"Ru ta des tu valoomes!"

What happened next was something that could have been taken from a dream.

A ray of the black fire that enveloped the sword shot skyward, off into the heavens. In a second, the entire chamber was covered in a whirlwind of small glittering pieces. "Fragments of the mirror!" Link recognized them immediately. Slowly, the tornado of glass closed in around the center of the room, where Link stood, the sword still raised next to the mirror frame. No one could see what was happening within the tornado. Even Link was blinded by the fierce mix of wind, sand and glass fluttering around him.

And then, as suddenly as it began, it all stopped. The sand that had been lifted by the wind fell to the ground and as the smoke cleared, the Princess could see Link, sword still in hand, standing in front of a completely mended mirror of Twilight.

Link stared at the mirror, his dreams coming true, he turned around and gave a huge smile in Zelda's direction and looked over at MM. To his continual surprise, MM was not even the slightest bit fazed by what had just happened. He was just standing there, as cloaked as ever despite the strong winds the magic had stirred up.

"Well, I'm sure you want to get going, so shall we?" Too happy to be unnerved by the calmness of the man, Link nodded and the three companions approached the edge and stepped onto the magical steps that appeared as a consequence of their previous action.

Link, hardly daring to believe what was happening, closed his eyes and stepped into the portal. When he opened them again, he was in the Twilight.

**YAY, plot advancement! What will happen when Midna and Link reunite? Stuff, for sure! Like it? Hate it? Have no life besides leaving irrelevent comments? Then R&R!**


	5. Chapter 4: Confusion

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 4.**  
><strong>Right, so I haven't been very productive lately. Luckily, I still have two more chapters prewritten for the next two weeks. Still, if you have any general ideas for the story, feel free to speak up and I'll see if I can work it into the story. Thanks to all the people who "story alert"ed this story. It makes me feel like a useful member of society. Special thanks to "John", the man with the most uncreative username ever, for his review. It's great to hear feedback. Next time though, DON'T MAKE THE JOKE! XD Anyway, this was the second most awkward chapter to write since I'm writing form a woman's point of view. Any female readers out there who can give me advice on representing them better, I desperatly need it. That said, let us begin.<strong>

**Disclaimer: Screw the rules! I have money.**

Chapter 4: _Confusion_

**A/N: Since most twili don't speak Hylian, all writing in bold will be in dialogue in Twilight language (Twilian)**

There is was. Link stared at the beautiful sight that presented itself to them. The Twilight was as astounding as ever and it was even more so for Zelda, the only member to have never been there. The sky was a shade of sunset orange and the land was dotted with psychedelic dark squares that floated lazily upward before fading.

Despite the stunning view, Link's attention was riveted on the palace in which, he was sure, his favorite Princess was ruling.

"Come on! Let's go!" he said, trying to stay calm and failing miserably. The trio approached the gates, expecting surprise from the guards at seeing light-dwellers, but they were not prepared for what actually happened.

Link arrived in front of the other two at the gates to the palace.

"Hello. I am Link, the hero of Twilight and I wish to speak to Princess Midna." The guards looked at each other.

**"What did she just say?"**

**"I think "she's" a guy..."**

**"Are you kidding? He's wearing a dress and tights."**

**"Whatever. The real question is why he's so pink."**

Zelda looked over at Link.

"I don't think they understand you..."

"Well how are we going to get inside? I don't speak Twilightian."

"First of all, it's Twilian. Secondly, we need to show them proof of who you are. Do you have anything that proves that you defeated Zant or that you're the hero?"

"Uh... My equipment... Oh wait! I have the Shadow Crystal. That counts, right?" And without waiting for a reply, he carefully took out the crystal.

"**Hey, look. He's doing something."**

**"What's he taking out?"**

**"It's... It's the embodiment of Zant's magic!"**

**"Get him before he causes any trouble!"**

As Link unwrapped the cloth around the shadow crystal, he heard the two guards agitated cries. Slowly, the two huge gates in front of them opened.

"Oh, good," said Zelda, "It worked." MM turned to the other two.

"Um, yeah. About that..." he said as the gates opened completely, revealing a group of about fifteen soldiers, all of which had their weapons pointed directly at them.

"**Drop the weapon and put your hands in the air!" **Link glanced nervously at Zelda as the guard closest to them shouted gibberish.

"What does he want?" he asked. Zelda stared at him.

"Unfortunately, I don't know. I Never learned to speak Twilian. In fact, I'm pretty sure no one alive in the Light Realm can speak it. They would have to have access to ancient texts that the royal library itself does not..." Then it hit both of them and they turned to MM.

"Hey hey hey! Slow down a second. I don't mean to insult your intelligence, but I'm pretty sure you can figure this one out without my language skills." Zelda's eyes went wide.

"So you can speak it?"

"Naturally, but please don't tell me you can't figure this out on your own..."

Meanwhile, the captain of the guard was getting more and more annoyed and tense as the three weird intruders spoke in a tongue he had never heard before. His second in command piped up: **"Sir, perhaps they're chanting an incantation? We should arrest them before it's too late."**

**"You're right,"** he replied, then to the enemies, **"You have thirty seconds to give yourselves in or we **_**will**_** use deadly force. This is your final warning!"**

"What did he say?" asked Link.

"Basically, if you don't figure out why there are a bunch of guards pointing their weapons at you in the next thirty seconds, you won't have to worry about it any more..." Zelda gave a big smile.

"They'll leave?"

"No, they'll kill us."

Link tensed. "I'm not going down without a fight, but I wish I knew what they wanted!" MM sighed.

"Are you really that dumb, wolf-boy?" he said. "Think about it. Three alien strangers arrive at a castle. They don't speak any understandable language and they hold an evil artifact coming from a recently deceased overlord who probably made life hell for everyone around here and they're completely ignoring the guards and still speaking an unknown language around aforementioned artifact."

Link and Zelda's jaws snapped shut.

"Ooh... That was pretty embarrassing." Link muttered. Gently, he laid the shadow crystal down on the ground and the three of them raised their hands in surrender.

* * *

><p>"Well this might be problematic."<p>

The two hylians glared at their companion. They had been unceremoniously thrown into a prison cell in the lower levels of the palace after MM had flat-out refused to remove his cloak resulting in some "aggressive negotiations" with a few of the guards until they were moved along to a high-level cell were he was to be allowed to remain cloaked. All this took a huge amount of time since no one could understand each other, causing them to resort to explanatory gestures.

It was now night, according to the fact that they were all pretty sleepy, or at least two of them were. MM simply sat cross-legged on the floor by the door of the prison cell.

Link tapped him on the shoulder: "We're going to bed now. First thing tomorrow we have to bust out of here."

No answer.

"Well, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

An hour later, when his two friends were asleep, MM stood up and walked over to were the guard stood at his post. Amusingly, it seemed that Link and Zelda had forgotten, with all the excitement, that he could speak Twilian. He cleared his throat, alerting the guard to his presence. Surprised, but excellently trained, the guard turned around and eyed his charge. Smiling at the thought of just how surprised he was about to get, MM spoke: **"Nice night to get arrested, no?" **The guard was so surprised he jumped backwards, crashing into the opposite wall and dropped his weapon, a mix of a spear and a halberd.

MM grinned even wider as the guard scrambled back to his feet and scooped his weapon up again.

Regaining his composure, he spoke in a whisper: **"You can speak Twilian?"**

**"Obviously, since I am now doing so."**

**"Why did you not speak before now?"**

**"Circumstance."**

**"That's not an answer. You **_**will**_** answer my questions."**

**"Listen up, goober. I am talking only to give you a warning. If we are not freed by the time the green one is up, you will have a major catastrophe on your hands. One piece of advice: take the shadow crystal to Princess Midna, and quick before she decides to execute you for imprisoning us... I bid you goodnight."**

Ignoring the guard's protests, MM turned around, strode to the center of the cell, and sat, cross-legged, on the floor with his back to the outside world.

* * *

><p>Link and Zelda were talking in hushed voices in the back of the cell. MM was still sitting cross-legged on the floor, though his eyes were open, signaling that he was awake. Finally, the guard that had been on duty all night, and the one MM had spoken with was replaced. After waiting for exactly an hour (MM's internal clock was very precise) he rose and walked over to the two conspirators in the back.<p>

"Well then. What are you two talking about?" MM said. Link looked over at him.

"We're figuring out a way to escape, but without my gear it's not looking good..."

"You want to escape?"

"Of course! If we can at least get Midna to see either me or Zelda then we're free."

"You know, if all you want is to get out of the cell, you could have asked..." And with that, MM turned around and walked to over to the barred cell door. Zelda leaned over to Link.

"What is he going to do?"

"Hello? Anyo- **I mean hello. Is anyone around?" **The Hero and the Princess heard a jumble of concerned and low voices outside their cell which to MM came across as:

**"Did you hear that?"**

**"That guy spoke our language"**

**"What do you think he wants?"**

**"Quiet! I'll speak to him." **A pause **"What is it, prisoner, and when did you learn Twilian?" **On the inside of the prison, MM was placing himself and, though Link and Zelda didn't know, was focusing his energy into his palm.

**"Let me put it this way: you have five seconds to let us out or I'm making my own exit." **There was laughter from the other side then the same voice as earlier spoke up.

**"Oh yeah? How are you gonna do that?" **A hidden grin spread across MM's face.

**"Time's up..."**

Then, with tremendous power, MM delivered an open-palmed strike on the steel door and to everyone's surprise the door flew of it's hinges, crashing into the opposite wall and crushing two guards. As said guards slumped, unconscious, on to the floor, the other men regained their wits and charged at the escapee. With complete calm, MM stood his ground.

The first two guards had spears. Reacting with that superhylian speed of his, MM raised his hands as though praying and knocked both weapons away at the same time then, grabbing hold of them, forced the hilts back into the two guards' heads, knocking them out. With barely a moment to spare he called back to his cellmates:

"Follow me and stick close!"

Advancing into the hallway, MM noticed more guards coming from either sides. Since the area was rather thin, no more than two (one on each side) could attack at once. In a moment of sudden inspiration, MM readied himself. Then, as the next two reached him and attempted to decapitate him with their swords, he leaned backwards in limbo allowing the enemy blades to pass harmlessly over him. Continuing his motion, he fell into a handstand and with amazing agility performed a perfect split, hitting both guards in the face and knocking them back into the guards behind them leaving him a few crucial seconds.

As Link and Zelda watched the fight from the sidelines, they were once again amazed at the skill demonstrated by the descendant of the King's most trusted ally. As they saw him finish off the first two, they began wondering how they would escape the corridor with so many guards coming at them. Surely even Mr. Mysterious couldn't defeat the entirety of the Twilight army? Even as they wondered this, MM turned and faced the wall. A fraction of a second later, a small explosion rocked the place for somehow, somehow, a gaping hole had been made in the wall.

As the two former prisoners stared incredulously in front of them, MM grabbed hold of both their wrists and yanked them through the hole just as the guards managed to bypass their two stunned comrades and attempted to re-apprehend the three "dangerous terrorists".

As the trio burst into the hallway on the other side of the wall, startling a couple of twili nobles and their servants, MM ushered his companions on and they ran off down the hall as the first guards began poking their heads through the hole. Having no idea where they were going, the Hero and the Princess followed their friend who seemed to be leading them somewhere.

As they rounded another corner, they found themselves blocked by an entire squadron of soldiers that were all standing protectively in front of a humongous cast-iron door with swirling patterns etched onto it. MM turn his head towards Link.

"You said you wanted to see Midna, right? Well get ready." And before he could even show his surprise, his strange ally jumped forwards and into the thick of battle.

* * *

><p>Midna sat on her throne, listening to Lady Ratnak blather on about why the council should bathe in the oil of a certain flower before meeting in the future.<p>

"It was once a custom of our ancestors to bathe in that oil before they discovered the spell that created water. It would dishonor them to not follow in their footsteps. Also, the healing benefits..."

Midna tuned her out. She was really, _really_ bored. She had been since she had gotten back from their adventure. "No!" she thought. She didn't want to dwell on that action. But still... It was the most painful choice of her life. To have lied to Princess Zelda and _Link_... She still regretted breaking the mirror but she knew why she had to do it. Not because of the "balance of the universe" or whatever, but because she knew her people would never accept the Light-Dwellers... Would never accept Link.

She knew she had feelings for the pointy-eared hero for after everything she had done: turning him into her slave, steed and putting him in mortal danger, her traveling companion had never given up on her and accepted her requests with no hesitation and complete devotion.

She thought, or perhaps hoped, that Link didn't hate her for all that, but that was not likely. Vaguely, she heard the head councilor thank Lady Ratnak for her speech and call out the next item on the agenda. She sighed, thinking of all the good times she had had with the Hero. Knowing she shouldn't dwell on someone she was assured to never see again, she tried to focus on the conversation going on around her like a good ruler should but images of his face, with those sparkling blue eyes of his, kept popping up into her mind.

"Princess? Princess Midna?" As she heard her name, she snapped back to reality with an unpleasant bump.

"My apologies," she said, "Could you repeat that please?" The man who had been calling her name was her head of palace security. He smiled.

"Certainly. I was saying that we apprehended three people attempting to force entry to the palace with some of Zant's evil magic yesterday. The reason I'm bringing this up is that one of them made the particular request that we show you the evil relic they were using insisting that you knew them."

Midna stared at the small box that her security man was handing her. Getting up off her throne, she walked over to the table and grabbed the container. However, just as she was about to open it, loud noises began issuing from the other side of the locked iron door leading out of the throne room. Everyone froze, the throne-room guards tensed. Staring at the door as the noises got closer and louder, she abruptly wrenched open the box and looked inside just as the gigantic metal doors crashed open, the lock snapping clean off and a beautiful Princess, a cloaked stranger and a green-clad Hero walked in.

No one moved but Midna, her head whipping repeatedly from the Shadow Crystal and the man she loved. Link was here! She was sure it was him, her heart was beating like crazy as his sapphire eyes locked onto her." In the face of such a heart-stopping moment where all her dreams and nightmares were realized, she did the only thing that seemed logical.

She fainted.

* * *

><p>Link ran into the throne room and immediately spotted <em>her<em>. Midna was just as beautiful as ever, and she was staring right at him. He opened his mouth to call out to her but to his horror, without warning, she slumped down to the ground, out cold.

"**He just did something, GET HIM!"** shouted the captain of the guard.

MM was worried about Midna's collapse. Avoiding all the attacks he could and deflecting the others, he tried to make his way over to the fallen Princess. Unfortunately, there were simply to many people trying to block his way. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed even more soldiers come rushing in and approach his friends at top speed intending to take them down. Starting to get seriously annoyed at the circumstances, he cried out

**"Enough!"**

And with that, he jumped into the air.

As the guards were running up to own her and Link, Zelda heard a familiar voice yell out. She turned to look at the source of the cry, hoping it was not emitted out of pain. It was not. Zelda watched as Mr. Mysterious jumped impossibly high in the air, unsheathed his golden sword and, yelling something that sounded like "REHTEA!" he came falling down to earth. As he reached the floor, he struck it with his sword, which glowed with power as it released a powerful shock wave.

A red circle of light expanded from the point of contact. As it traveled, it knocked down everyone within the room except for the unarmed nobles, Link, Zelda and Midna since she was already down. Staring, astounded, at MM, Zelda said:

"Well, I guess we owe you another one..."

Rushing over to Midna's crumpled form, Link close on his heels, he did not respond.

Urging the Hero back, MM slowly ran his hand over the Twilight Princess's body with his eyes closed, muttering under his breath.

After a few tense seconds, he stood once more.

"She's fine," he pronounced, "She was simply overcome when she saw us enter."

Allowing Link to crouch beside the unconscious woman, Mr. Mysterious walked over to the captain of the guard, who was struggling to get up after the rough fall he had taken.

As he saw the jail-breaker approach him, the captain cringed, waiting for the finishing blow to come. After a few painless seconds, he opened his eyes again to find, to his surprise, a gloved hand extended to him. Suspiciously, he accepted and allowed himself to be aided to his feet. The intruder looked at him.

**"I apologize for using that attack. I sincerely do not wish to fight you. We come in peace. The fine lady accompanying me is the Princess in the Light Realm and the young man in green is none other that the Hero of Twilight himself and if you do not believe me, ask Princess Midna when she wakes up. I'm afraid she fainted from the shock of seeing us. Well..."** he chuckle, **"one of us more than the others."**

The captain was skeptical as he watched the stranger walk to the other members of the royal guard and help them up as well. But then again, he decided, they didn't seem to be causing any harm and besides, as much as he hated to admit it, they were no match for him. Taking his options into consideration, he told his men to stand down for now.

As the the local Princess was being tended to, the trio of foreigners were discussing the best way to introduce the newer member of their group. "Don't worry," said MM, "I've got all under control." "That's what we're worried about..." grumbled Link.

After approximately 10 minutes of smothered hostility between the intruders and the locals, the Twilight Princess began to awaken. As Link, Zelda, the captain and a few important nobles crowded around the makeshift bed they had made on the councilors' table, the unconscious ruler slowly opened her eyes...

* * *

><p>Midna couldn't believe her eyes. There were a half-dozen faces looking down on her with concern, but the only one she saw was <em>his<em>. His floppy green hat, his pointy ears, his dirty-blonde hair, his sparkling blue eyes. She was about to give in and kiss him when...

* * *

><p>Link looked down at her. Her lovely orange eyes, her flaming red hair, her purple lips. He was moments away of giving in and kissing her when...<p>

* * *

><p>Remembering the appropriate protocol for a situation like this, Lady Ratnak was the first to speak: <strong>"As stated in article 547, paragraph 98, of the Second New Rewrite of the Twili Supportive Constitution, the SNRTSC, you are required to accept an official and private audience with anyone who may have helped you recover when ill or wounded if aforementioned people are deemed secure or or if they claim to be, with pertinent evidence supporting it, that they are essential members of society."<strong>

Suddenly remembering that they were surrounded by other people, Midna jerked up.

**"Yes, of course. In that case, if everyone would be so kind as to leave me with these two,"** she said. Her captain spoke up.

**"Um, three, actually... That man over there was the one to "help you recover when ill or wounded" or whatever," He sighed, "though I'm not sure if a simple diagnostic is enough to be considered helping recover..."** And with that, he left, along with everyone else except Zelda, her crush and the strange cloaked man. Regaining her composure, Midna slipped off the table and, not daring to look Link in the eyes, returned to her throne.

Out of respect, the two hylians bowed down to her and were surprised, but pleased, when MM followed suite. After looking over her guests heads and making sure the great iron doors were once again closed, though not locked, she spoke.

"What? How? When? Why?" she stated, still a bit overcome by all that was happening and still not looking at Link.

The Hero, a bit slow on the draw since he was staring at his old companion hoping to catch her eye, did not respond quickly enough so, since MM showed no intention of explaining anything, Zelda began from the point when they had discovered the existence of the Dark Sword.

**WEEEE! Stuff is happening! How will Midna react? Find out next time, on Dragonball Z.  
>Last minute thing: All Fire Emblem fans, did you find the reference?<strong>


	6. Chapter 5: Revelations

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 5.**  
><strong>Guess what everybody? It's finally time too reveal the identity of Mr. Mysterious! Have you placed your bets? Will you be right? Read to find out! As always, thanks to those who alerted my story and also to Narkloth for his review. Hope you enjoy the rest of the story man! Also, I don't know when this will go up because I don't have constant internet access because there are renovations on my house happening now so the floors are all ripped up. Hopefully I can still upload on Saturday. Also in this chapter: the most obvious Kung Fu Panda reference <em>ever<em>. I almost killed my "beta reader" for not noticing it. Anyway, I kind of find my intros to be too long, so I'll end this one of here. Good reading, y'all!  
>*YAY I'm uploading from my local library.<strong>

**Disclaimer: Avoiding copyright claims - Like a _boss_**

Chapter 5:_ Revelations_

Thankfully, Zelda's explanation was incredible enough to give Midna a reason to be perplexed and not look at Link. When the Princess of Hyrule had finished her story, leaving out the part were Link was depressed, the former imp stared at her entwined hands for many minutes, drinking in what she had just learned.

She had broken the portal to make sure that the Twili never met Link and now, despite what she had done, he had found a way back to her. How she wished she could tell him how she felt... But no, she hated it, but she had to be a Princess for her people. She had deserted them once and she couldn't do it again for her own selfish reasons. They would never accept a Light-dweller in their midst and she had to be responsible despite her sentiments.

Concentrating on the second part of the adventure, she considered the mystery of the story, which is to say the cloaked man standing near her friends. Determined to figure out who he was, she addressed him:

"It's seems that you've refused to show your face and share your name with them, but let me tell you something," she said forcefully, "In my palace, no one is concealed in order to allow instant recognition and names are out on the table so that one can speak to another or, if needs be, warn them of impending danger. I therefore order you as the ruler of this land to reveal yourself and state your name." Link rolled his eyes.

"Save your breath, Zelda's tried that." MM looked up at the blue-skinned Princess sitting before him.

"Very well." he said simply. Zelda stared at him.

"What?" she asked. "Why wouldn't you do it for us?"

"Well," he answered, "Princess Midna presented me with a valid reason to do so, which is to say easier communication in case of battle and friend/foe recognition. You did no such thing." That said, he slowly raised his hands to his hood and lowered it.

Everyone leaned in closer to stare at him. His face was roguishly handsome, with a straight nose, pale skin and pure white teeth. His eyes were, as ever, the crackling orange of a flame and his hair was a fine brown. Also, incredible though it seemed to the three onlookers, the man's ears were not pointy, but rounded and much shorter.

As he looked around at them, noticing their stares, he smiled slightly and said: "I know I am not a normal-looking guy here, but where I come from, we are all like this. Also, I have not one, but many names. Some have called me Odia, others Ryu and still others have even called me Kami. However, I like to go by the name of Kyo." Zelda recovered first and said:

"That's an unusual name."

"Oh yes, yes it is."

Link and Midna slowly got over his appearance. "So this is what you really look like..." Link asked. Kyo smiled.

"No, it's not. But let's not get into that just yet, for all practical purposes this is my true form."

Perplexed, but not ready to argue with him, the three others simply raised an eyebrow and sigh in annoyance at his ever-mysterious demeanor.

"Right," said Midna, "Now there's the issue of the mysterious force that supposedly resides in the Dark Sword. Perhaps you would be so kind as to further explain your theory, Kyo?" He frowned.

"I don't know much about it. All I know is that instability will cause this evil spirit to rise."

Link drew the sword in question and studied it carefully before saying "If that's all true, we should just return it to the cave I took it from. The mirror's repaired so we shouldn't need it unless it breaks again..." He looked over at Midna, who looked away.

Kyo intervened in the awkward moment that followed. "Unfortunately, that's not an option. First off, the temple of illusions had a mechanism to make it cave in once the sword was retrieved by the one destined to have it, so the cave doesn't exist anymore. Also, fate has an abnormal way of reuniting two things destined to be together, so it would find another way to you no matter where you put it.

They all looked at the sword, realizing the implications of his words. "So what you're saying," said Zelda, "Is that no matter what we do, we're stuck with that sword?" Kyo sighed.

"Yes."

"Well that can't be good..."

"Nope."

"Whatever," said Midna, "We'll deal with that when it becomes an issue. In the meantime, let's get some sleep." The escape, the fainting and the explanation had lasted until fairly late. They had eaten the food that had been brought to them form the kitchens by a _very_ curious Lady Ratnak, who almost had to be forcefully removed from the throne room.

They left said room and the three followed Midna throughout the palace. "I'll bring you to three of the guest rooms, you should be comfortable there."

"I'm sorry, that won't be necessary." stated Kyo, "I don't sleep." Link looked at him strangely.

"Yes you do. You slept back when we were in the desert." Kyo smiled.

"I only did that because you seemed to be uncomfortable enough around me as it was. I _can_ sleep, I just don't."

"Whatever," interrupted Midna, "I'll bring the two _normal_ people to their rooms and you can just go wherever."

"Oh, no. It would be impolite not to follow you to your rooms to bid you goodnight."

The trio first dropped Zelda off at her room, then proceeded down the hall to where Link's was. The guest rooms were in the western section of the palace. The Princess's chambers were to the East and the throne room was in the center, in front of the library. The kitchens were supposed to be in front of the guest chambers and the armory was to the East of the throne room.

When they arrived at Link's room-to-be, Kyo bade him goodnight and strode off. Scratching his head, Link asked Midna: "Hey, uh... To you want to, you know, take a walk or something?" Midna wasn't looking at him when she responded.

"I'm sorry, Hero of Twilight, I have urgent business to attend to. Good night." And with that, she walked away and she didn't look back. Unbeknownst to the two of them, Kyo had heard everything. He really did have excellent hearing...

* * *

><p>Midna sat in the quiet emptiness of the library, a tear slowly rolling down her face. What was she going to do? She couldn't keep acting like this forever! It broke her heart to talk to him like that...<p>

"I see that even in solitude, you have not found peace." Midna whipped her head around to see none other than Kyo, leaning against a chair and looking around the empty library.

"What are you doing here?" Midna asked, trying her best, and failing, to sound authoritarian.

"I am not just a powerful fighter, I have experienced enough to know when something is wrong." he responded in a calming tone. Midna looked away to hide her wet face.

"Wrong? Nothing's wrong. Why would something be wrong?" Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw him shake his head and smile.

"So what _is_ wrong?" he asked.

Under normal circumstance, Midna wouldn't have even dreamed of answering that question, but there was something about his... _Aura_ that made her trust him, not to mention she really needed someone to talk to. She sighed.

"If you're that smart, you should know what the problem is..." she said sadly. "Link is such a great person." Kyo looked over at her.

"You love him, don't you?" Midna looked at the ground and nodded. "Well then there is no problem."

"But there is!" Midna all but cried. "He would never feel the same! When we met, I treated him like my personal slave! I forced him to repeatedly risk his life for me and he did it without complaint. I was so mean to him and to my eyes he was scum... And then, even if I did manage to get him to like me, he would probably be executed! We're in the Twilight for crying out loud! His... His kind banished us here for all eternity! The people would hate him and we would be forced apart _again_!"

Midna was breathing heavily, tears running down her cheeks. She turned to Kyo with a look of unending suffering on her face. Kyo looked her in the eyes and smiled a bit sadly. ""Then"s and "if"s are not what make up our lives, Midna. You are too concerned with what was and what will be. There's a saying: Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but _today_ is a gift. That is why it is called the present." And with a final smile, he turned and made his way toward the door. Midna stared after him, a slightly shocked look on her face.

"Thanks, Kyo," she said under her breath, "You're a real friend."

Midna was not the only one to be impressed, Zelda had been watching the entire thing from the other side of the library. Unfortunately, being so caught up in what had transpired moments before, neither princess noticed the back of Kyo's left hand glow through his glove at Midna's last words.

The Twilight Princess sat in the library for quite some time and, when she finally got up and left, it was not in the direction of _her_ chambers.

From the shadow of a secluded spot, Kyo watched her walk off in the direction of the guest rooms. He smiled as she turned the corner. "You can come out now, Princess." he said. Zelda walked out of another shadowed section of wall.

"How long have you known I was there?"

"Oh please, I've known since the very beginning." Zelda smiled at him.

"I'm impressed of how well you handled that situation. I didn't know you were that sensitive to things such as those." Kyo gave her a mock-sigh of exasperation.

"I can do deep if I want. Life is full of bad twists, so one must learn to relax and enjoy what one has." Zelda shook her head.

"You're one strange friend, Kyo."

At her words, it happened again. The back of his left hand glowed slightly through his glove except this time Zelda was not too distracted to notice. "What's that, on your hand?" she asked suspiciously. Quickly hiding said hand in his sleeve, he replied nonchalantly:

"Oh, nothing of importance. Well, if you have no-one else you wish to spy on, I suggest you get to bed. You'll need all the sleep you can get when it comes time to play the dangerous game of politics tomorrow."

And with that, he left a slightly suspicious Zelda behind and made his way outside the palace. From the balcony that Link and Midna were sitting on together, they saw him walk to the very center of the plot of land in front of the building, sit down with the soles of his feet meeting in front of him and stop moving.

"What do you suppose he's doing?" asked Link. Midna smiled.

"Nothing important, I'm sure. How about we... Take this conversation inside for a while?" she added seductively. Link smiled and followed her inside.

* * *

><p>The following morning, the four friends woke around the same time and descended to dine together. Nobody mentioned Link and Midna's renewed closeness as they ate in relative silence. Once breakfast was finished, Midna once again summoned them to the throne room for a private talk.<p>

"Right, there's one more issue we have to deal with straightaway," she said, taking her place on the throne. "Your personal security." Link looked at her with one eyebrow raised.

"Why's that?"

She sighed. "Unfortunately, Zant still has some supporters out there. We've been tracking them down and arresting them but we still can't find their home base. Since you're the one who killed him, I imagine they might want revenge."

"But you were the one who actually killed him."

"Umm... I may have, uh, forgotten to mention that to them..."

Rolling his eyes, Link nodded. "I'll be careful. I always have both swords if something goes wrong."

"Right," answered Midna warmly as Zelda and Kyo exchanged winks behind their backs.

"Now then," interrupted the Hylian princess, "For more political matters..."

"I'm ready," replied Link's girlfriend, then she added "You two boys should clear out. It'll get pretty boring." In no hurry to lose precious time in a dull conversation, they bowed to the royalty and left for the small garden in front of the palace.

When they reached the bed of grass that comprised the front garden, Kyo once again fell gently to the ground and brought the soles of his feet together. Link stared at him. "What are you doing?" Kyo closed his eyes as he answered

"Meditating. It calm's the spirit."

"Whatever you say," the Hero replied.

"So, do you think we'll be attacked and I'll be assassinated by some evil gang?" Link asked after a bit. Immobile, the other responded:

"That depends if you're foolish enough to let them win..."

"Them who?"

"The bad guys right behind you."

* * *

><p>For the past few hours, Zekot and his team of freedom fighters had been surveying the front doors of the Twilight Palace, waiting for their target to come out. When the accursed "Hero" finally did, they were ready.<p>

Signaling silently to his group, Zekot stealthily made his way over to were he and a third party member were talking. As they approached, he made another signal and his men spread out around the duo of traitors. He, as the captain, took center position with his second in command Yuggan on his left and his girlfriend Tigsa on his right.

They were the elite of the Zantist troops. Trained in everything of the Light-Dweller's from their weak spots to their language. They had never yet failed a mission and they weren't about to start now. As he slowly sneaked up on his enemy, he caught a few sentences of their conversation.

"Them who?"

"The bad guys right behind you."

He froze and barely had the time to wonder "How does he know I'm here? His eyes are closed!" before Link swung around.

* * *

><p>Hearing how serious his tone was, Link unsheathed the Master Sword at an unbelievable pace, spinning around and slicing a shocked twili holding a knife clean in half. Their cover blown, a half-dozen other assassins leaped out from various hiding places.<p>

The first, a young twili male sporting a dagger, attempted to stab the Hero in the shoulder but was blocked by the Hylian Shield and transpierced. Spinning around, Link caught the short-spear of his next opponent with his hilt and redirected it, finishing by delivering a diagonal slice across his chest. Senses tingling, he reacted fast to a movement on his right and locked swords with what seemed to be the last enemy.

Struggling fiercely with his foe, Link pushed with all his might and the swords slowly slid into a position favoring the Hero. Seeing that he was about to lose, the other muttered something under his breath and a small ball of fire shot out of his mouth and straight onto Link's hands, burning them. With a cry of pain, he involuntarily released his grip on the Master Sword and it flew off through the air towards the palace. Their purpose accomplished, the flames vanished.

Victory assured, the assassin brought his sword up to deliver a final blow. The Hero, out of sheer instinct and hours of battle experience, reached for his only last option. Following the teachings of the Hero of old, he unsheathed the Dark Sword and used the Mortal Draw, instantly destroying his victim. As he recovered from his near-death experience, he felt the evil sword jerk sharply and froze.

Meanwhile, the other failed assassins had tried to take down Kyo, only to find out painfully that they could not. Using his flexibility, agility, speed and strength, he knocked them out one at a time without moving his feet. Finished with this bothersome task, he looked up to see Link slash at the last enemy using... The Dark Sword... Then he saw it twitch slightly.

He sighed. "That didn't take long..." he said to himself, then he prepared himself for what he was going to do.

The black weapon was jerking mightily in Link's hands. Trying to regain control of it, the Hero held onto it as hard as possible. Then, with a final, grip-wrenching spasm, the Dark Sword exploded.

Link shut his eyes as the power coming from the remains of the sword caused him to stumble back slightly. When he opened them again, he gasped. The sword was no longer there. It had been replaced by a tall blueish-gray creature with with hair covering one eye and a dark red cloak that covered its shoulders and chest.

The... _Thing..._ Let out a roar of displeasure and ran at the green-clad man. "How dare you defeat him! I curse you and all your kin! WHERE IS ZELDA!" He screamed, a black scimitar appearing out of nowhere in his hand and inches from Link's throat. Stunned, the later could only stutter and stare nervously at the deadly object mere millimeters from his neck.

"Looking for me?" cried a recognizable female voice form a little distance away. The new enemy let go of the Hero and turned around. Princess Zelda herself was standing not far away. Eyes full of hate, the evil entity glared at the Princess and charged at her with incredible speed, scimitar poised to strike.

"Look out!" Yelled Link, fearing that it was the end of Zelda. It was too late, the enemy swung his weapon and... nothing. No blood, no cry of pain, no dead Princess. The Hero stood in shock as Zelda blocked the hit with her arm, expressionless and strong as steel. Astonished at the seemingly impossible turn of events, Link could do nothing but stare at the foe struggling to cut her skin until the palace doors flew open with a bang and a bunch of people ran out, in their lead Midna and...

Zelda. "What? How is this possible?" Asked the Hero of Twilight incredulously as Zelda came up beside him and stood in shock as _she_ battled a creature with her hands. Midna and a contingent of Twili guards arrived next, but did not attack, since they did not know exactly what was going on.

"Hello, Ghirahim." said the battling Zelda so that only her adversary could hear him. He snarled.

"I _will_ have your soul, foolish girl!"

"Are you sure it's _my_ soul that you're after? Take a look over there." She answered, nodding towards the larger group of spectators. Unable to resist, he glanced over and saw... Zelda... Again.

"What the...?" he shouted, stunned. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction of her assailant, Zelda used her free hand to hit him hard in the stomach. So hard, in fact, that with a strangled groan he flew back about twenty meters and hit the ground hard.

Pushing himself up, Ghirahim limped away from the fight. The last thing he said before vanishing in thin air was:

"Don't think this is over. Demise will rise again! I will get your soul!" And on that note, he vanished.

Zelda walked over to Zelda. "I'm Zelda," stated Zelda. "You are Zelda," answered Zelda. "But you're also Zelda?" Zelda inquired. "No, I'm not Zelda," replied Zelda. Zelda took a step back. "Then who are you?" Zelda smiled. "I'm Kyo..."

As he said it, a whirl of colors engulfed not-Zelda and cleared to present the smirking face of Kyo himself. "Magic has other uses than healing you, you know."

Link sighed. "Well, that explains why you were able to block a sword with your arm. Thanks for having my back, by the way," he said, extending his hand. "I promise to help out if you ever get into trouble. That's what friends do, right?"

And with those words, Kyo's hand, which he had also extended to shake the Hero's, began to glow anew. And this time he couldn't cover it up.

"What's that?" Link asked. Zelda joined in with a "Indeed, what is it?" and then Midna, saying "What's with the glowing hand?"

The glow fading, Kyo sighed. He had hoped he could pull this whole thing off without revealing too much, but it seemed that that wasn't about to happen.

"Well," he began, "Remember that time I told you about my ancestor and the Sheikah guarding the Dark Sword?"

"Yes," answered the hylians.

"Well... I lied."

* * *

><p>"So you lied..." Zelda was pacing around the throne-room while an annoyed Link drummed his fingers on the councilors table. Midna, the one too have spoken, sat on he throne with a piercing stare pointed in Kyo's direction.<p>

The object of conversation stood with his arms crossed in the center of the room. "Yes, I did." he replied.

"So, would you mind telling us the real story, Mr. I-can-turn-into-Zelda?" Link asked.

"I suppose I don't have a choice. Not anymore..." he sighed.

"What do you mean "not anymore"" interrupted Zelda.

"You'll see." the liar replied. "I am not, as I previously claimed to be, the descendant of a royal adviser who was charged to protect the Dark Sword. In fact, it was _I_ who did all that. I may not look it, but I am thousands of years old..." he said, and the listeners gasped.

"That's impossible," Link said.

"Quite the contrary, it is true. Also, the royal family never charged me to look after the sword. I did that on my own initiative and, when they found out, my masters encouraged me to watch over it until the day it would be needed once again. The symbol on my left hand is one that should be very familiar to Link and Zelda, as they have one on their own hands as well."

"The... The Triforce?" whispered Midna.

"Exactly," Kyo responded. "Have you never wondered why the center triangle of the Triforce is empty? It symbolizes the unity between all three powers. It is an endless circle, you see. Wisdom leads to courage, courage leads to power and power can either lead to wisdom or, unfortunately, insanity. My masters are the those who created the universe. Nayru, Farore and Din. The secret is that initially, there was a fourth god. He has long since departed this world and no longer lives even in the sacred realm. To ensure peace in the world, that god created me and entrusted me with the fourth piece of the Triforce: the Triforce of Bonds. It's power is so that I can use quite powerful magic, but only in the right circumstance."

"Why is that?" demanded Link.

"Simply because I am not, as common labeling would suggest, just Deus ex. The balance of the world would tilt if I intervened too often. Thus, to ensure that my powers were not depended on by the population, they were limited. Not limited as in quantity, but limited as to how much I can use in certain situations and those limitations follow a simple rule: I am only to use my powers and magic in situations where something unpredictable and that would not have happened if not for my being present occurs. Also, I may use them in situations where I am personally offended, such as my breaking us out of that wonderful palace prison. That's the reason it hurt so much to heal you, Zelda. Because if I hadn't been there, you probably would have gotten wounded a lot worse, not counting the desert temple. Therefore, when I was healing you, I was not following those rules. Obviously, I can still use my powers even disrespecting those laws, but it is very painful."

"Wait a sec," interrupted Link. "If you can't use your powers unless you caused the event, how could you transform into Zelda and distract that bad guy out there?"

"Simple: I did not directly intervene. I simply transformed into her and the the "bad guy", whose name is Ghirahim by the way, rushed me. I just used my powers in self defense, which is also allowed for obvious reasons. It is a convenient loophole in the law, but logical none-the-less."

"So what does this "Ghirahim" person want?" demanded Zelda. Looking straight into her eyes, Kyo answered her.

"Your soul." Everyone gasped. "Well actually," he continued, "He only _thinks_ he wants your soul. It serves no purpose to him for you no longer have the soul of a goddess within you and have not had one for thousands of years, which he will soon find out. My guess is that once he realizes that he can't have your soul, he'll try to take over the world by using the group of pro-Zantists as an army."

"Wait a second," said Midna. "Why would he want to have Zelda's soul in the first place and how will he convince the Zantists to serve him?"

"Well, the last time he was released he served under an evil overlord named Demise. At the time, he tried to use the Princess's soul to revive his fallen master, but the Hero of Time prevented him from totally succeeding. Now, as I said, Zelda's soul is no longer as divine as it once was, so the resuscitation wouldn't work. As for how he'll get the rebels on his side: magic. Most probably some sort of mind influence. Therefore, Twilight Princess, I suggest you be on your guard for once Ghirahim realizes Zelda is of no use to him, you'll be his target since you're the political leader here."

"Right," replied Midna. "I'll alert the barracks and have them patrol the area regularly. Luckily for us, there aren't that many rebels left, so his attack force is virtually null." She sighed. "Well, I guess we'll deal with military organization next."

"Ah, yes." began Kyo, "I almost forgot. Link, you need a new weapon."

"Why's that?" the Hero asked. "I have the Master Sword."

"True, but as was demonstrated in the previous battle, it has become a bit too heavy for you to handle efficiently. I'll get one ready and the next time I see you, I'll hand it over."

"Right," grumble Link, ashamed of his failure on the battlefield, "Thanks..." An uncomfortable silence ensued.

"So," summarized Link, "You're over 9000 years old and you were created by gods to protect the world and someone who _used_ to be after Zelda will now try to take over the Twilight realm and I'm the one who brought him back to life..." An echoing silence ensued. "Yeah," he finished, "I screwed up..." Kyo nodded.

"Big time."

**So, did you guess Kyo's identity? IMPOSSIBLE! HE'S AN OC! MWAHAHAHAHAAA...! I went out on limb with the whole "fourth god" thing, but if you don't like it don't worry: he's never mentionned again so you can just pretend the original Goddesses made him. Finally, if you didn't get the Kung Fu Panda reference and_ have_ watched the film, I will murder you in your sleep.  
>Kind of random, but my wisdom teeth are hurting so frickin much right now. I need to have them pulled...<strong>


	7. Chapter 6: Dark Force Rising

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 6.**  
><strong>To be honest, not one of my better chapters in my opinion. On the other hand, I wrote chap 7 in three days I enjoyed it so much, so look forward to that. Sorry I'm uploading a bit late today, the past week has been hectic; I've had a huge school project to work on and I had my wisdom teeth out so I was a bit busy. As usual, thanks to those who alerted my story as well as to BoshiBasher555, finncelineforever, "bman" and LoZfanbman (maybe the same as bman, I think probably so.) for their great comments, you have all been put on the "do not kill" list. But seriously, I really enjoyed reading those comments, I'm glad some people are enjoying my story! Now then, once more with feeling: Chapter 6!<strong>

**Disclaimer: I have no idea...**

Chapter 6: _Dark Force Rising_

Link, hurried up a hallway somewhere in the palace. In face of current events, he had been promoted to temporary Admiral of the Twili Army. Midna had stated that his expertise in dealing with baddies would : "Make him a useful leader, despite having to be guided by me throughout his quest to defeat Ganondorf." Midna will be Midna...

That, however, was not in any way the object of the Hero's hurry. He had not had a chance to speak with Kyo since he had revealed his true identity because he had been ushered to a tactical planing meeting that had lasted a while and then he had had to tour the palaces' defenses and a bunch of other security-related stuff.

Ever since he had learned of Kyo's true self, he had some very important questions to ask him and he half-dreaded the answers he would get.

The shapeshifter had refused to become part of the army for, as he said, that would disturb the balance. Instead, he said he would simply stand in the middle of any battlefield as needed and kill all those who attacked him. This meant that each Twili soldier would have to memorize his looks, but it was a fair trade for such a powerful ally.

As such, he also refused any semblance of quarters, insisting that he didn't sleep. So Link had been wandering the palace and it's grounds for the past hour or so trying to find him. Finally, he noticed him leaning against a wall in the North-Western section of the area.

Cautiously, Link approached him and said: "May I speak to you for a second?" "Certainly." replied the other. Link looked around at the various maids and other lower-class denizens of the palace that meandered around past them. "Perhaps somewhere more private?" he suggested, gesturing to an empty room of to the side. Kyo shrugged. "If you wish."

The two made their way over to the unused accommodation and Link made sure to close the door behind them. Once they were alone, the Hero sighed and look over at the sole window.

"You hid the Dark Sword..." Link stated. Kyo nodded. "Indeed I did." "That means you set the three trials I passed." "Also true." A moment of silence passed. "Then how did I pass the first one?"

Kyo nodded again. "A very natural question, might I say. Now, as it was written on the stone, it was a test of courage. Courage does not necessarily mean success. Basically, you passed because you gave it your all and nothing less. The only way you could have lost, was by giving up or not fighting at 100%. In fact, even if you had been cut down you would have won and not have been hurt. On the other hand, had you given up, you would have been killed."

"Right, OK. Thanks..." said Link, getting up and heading for the door. "That clears that up. See you around!"

"That's not the reason you wanted to speak to me, is it?" stated Kyo and Link froze, his hand on the doorknob. There was silence.

"No..."

"I thought as much."

Link returned to his seat and bowed his head.

"The last one," he said. "What did it mean? The vision of-"

"Stop. You need not tell me, for I can only answer the same thing. In fact, I already did on the stone. What you saw was the vision of a possible future. It will not necessarily come to pass, but it may. The future is always in motion."

"Is there no way to ensure that it never comes true? Some measures that can be taken? For example making sure that we never find ourselves at the place we were during the illusion?"

"One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it. There is nothing to do but wait. Patience is a virtue." And with that, he rose. "Also, I have finished the sword I was going to give you. Here..." From behind his cloak, he drew a longsword similar in shape and size and the Master Sword. It's blade was glistening golden, much like Kyo's own. Link accepted it and examined the blade. Flipping it over, he noticed some letters engraved in the steel. They read:_Sentio Vires , Pugna per Telum_. "What do these words mean?" the Hero asked. "In an ancient tongue, they are "Feel the power, wield the weapon," was the answer. With that, Kyo clasped Link's shoulder for a moment, then left, leaving the Hero to dwell over what was said.

* * *

><p>Zelda and Midna sat together in the royal chambers. "Thank the goddesses that's over with!" groaned Midna, flopping down on her bed.<p>

"Indeed, that was most tiresome. At least you have your boyfriend to annoy when you need to cheer up."

"Yeah, it _is_ fun to piss him off, it's just too bad I have to do it in secret."

"Why's that?"

"Come on! I can' just go up and _tell_ the royal council that I'm in love with a light-dweller!"

"What makes you think hey would mind? Link _did_ save them..."

"I know... I'm just sure that here's a law against it. Despite the fact that we're in a temporary truce, the population won't forgive you for your ancestor's banishing of us here, which means you'll have to leave again..."

"Don't feel so down, enjoy the time you have with him now!" Zelda said, going out on a limb and using the same philosophy that Kyo had the first time. Her gamble payed off and Midna smiled.

"I guess so... Anyway, speaking of boys," her smile became mischievous, "What do you think of Kyo?"

"W-w-what? What do you mean?"

"Just sayin'... He's pretty good-looking, don't you think?"

"That... That's based on personal judgment. There's no logical answer."

"I think you're just avoiding it!" replied Midna in a sing-song-y voice.

"I am not!"

Midna sighed. "I guess you're right. He is ugly, isn't he?"

"He is not! He's very handsome!"

"Oh-ho! So he's "handsome", is he? That doesn't sound like "no personal judgment."

"I-He-You! ARGH!" Zelda face-palmed. "If anyone hears about this conversation, you're going to have more than Ghirahim trying to kill you."

"Threat acknowledged, I will keep that promise." A few moments of silence passed. "There was something else I wanted to ask you about Kyo."

"What?" Zelda growled dangerously.

"I kinda realized that despite his recent explanation, he really didn't say much of who he was..."

Hyrule's Princess thought back to the lengthy speech the man had made and took a while before responding: "That may be so, but he has shown his loyalty to us in many ways. He probably has good reason to withhold that information. I, for one, trust him."

"I think you do a lot more than trust him, if you know what I mean..."

"I'm warning you!"

"Awww... Is the itty-bitty Princess getting angwy? Are you blushing?"

"NO, shut up!"

Midna smirked. "So, when are you going to tell him?"

"... At this point, I'm not even going to bother talking to you."

* * *

><p>The days pasted and still, there was no sign of Ghirahim or any semblance of an amassing army. Until a week later, when a trumpet sounded outside the palace gates...<p>

A soldier burst into the throne room, startling the four denizens therein. "Your majesty! Your majesty! The Zantist forces have arrived at the palace steps!"

Link sighed. "I suppose it's to much to ask for that they suddenly came to their sense and are giving themselves in?"

"They say they want to see the Princess," replied the guard.

Kyo spoke. "Not going to happen. If my theory about his goals is correct, that would be very dangerous."

"Well, what _should_ we do? We can't just ignore them." said Zelda.

"No worries," soothed Kyo. "They want a Princess, they'll get one." he said, eying Hyrule's ruler.

"I have a bad feeling about this..." sighed Link.

The final decision was to leave Midna behind and show up with Zelda instead. When they arrived at the front gates, Link gave the sign and the great portcullis opened. The enemy was there. Ghirahim himself stood at the head of a quite large group of armed rebels. As decided, Zelda, closely followed by the other two, walked up to him.

"What is this? I asked for the Princess."

"I am a Princess, none-the-less the one you wanted so badly last time." He sneered.

"Taunt me all you want, I have a right to see to ruler of this land."

"No you don't," stated Kyo.

"Of course I do! It's written in the book of law, you ignoramus."

"No, I meant we don't give a damn." The army backing up the opponent, rustled at this and a few of them yelled insults at the trio.

"You have no choice in the matter. We can easily last long enough to have a little chat now that the door is open. OUT OF THE WAY!"

"Um... No." answered Link, and the three would-be negotiators turned around and returned to the palace.

"ATTACK!" yelled Ghirahim from behind. Link blinked and stared at Kyo.

"Now what? You said you had a plan!"

"Watch and learn." replied the latter. With that, he murmured something that sounded vaguely familiar to Link and a large ball of fire shot out of the whispering man's mouth. The fire exploded onto the section of path leading into the palace and a wall of flame roared into existence, blocking off the entrance and stopping the invaders short.

As the gates finally swung shut, blocking the enemy of any chance of success, the crisis was averted. As Kyo coughed up some smoke, Link noticed Zelda staring at him in an odd kind of way.

"Hello, Twilight to Princess, why are you staring at Kyo like that?"

"Hah, I, Um, What?" asked Zelda, as though snapping out of a spell. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Hmm. If you say so."

It was a good thing that a disembodied voice chose that moment to make it's way over the walls of the palace, for if they had not, the Twilight would have been one Hero shorter. Aforementioned voice sounded somewhat like this:

"Don't think this is over! I will be victorious and you _will_ be destroyed! FEAR MY WRATH! I have weapons your puny brains could not even begin to imagine. Forces that I control that will crush you like a bug! You have twelve hours to abdicate to our might. If you do not comply... I will be back!" And nothing more.

"Well that's serendipitous." Link said sarcastically.

"Don't be so sesquipedalian, Hero. Everything went according to plan." replied Kyo. Zelda raised an eyebrow.

"If by "according to plan" you mean that he just told us that he would kill us all, then yes. All is well." Kyo rolled his eyes.

"Do you honestly believe that if we had done something differently he would have just gone to die in a hole? The point was that he not have direct access to Midna, or she would surely have been taken down."

"Right, we should go tell her what happened." Link pointed out and they left the courtyard and returned to the throne-room.

* * *

><p>"So, what happened?" inquired the Twilight Princess.<p>

"Not much. They only swore to destroy us all if we didn't give up within 12 hours." Link informed.

"The usual then?"

"Pretty much..."

"Well, then. I will inform the council of what occurred and we will declare a state of war."

"I'm sure that will be a happy meeting." sighed Kyo.

"In the meantime," interrupted Zelda, "We should leave so we don't intrude upon the royal congregation."

"I absolutely agree." said Kyo, catching on. "Let's get out of here." The two hurried out of the room, leaving the two former adventurers staring quizzically at the door. As though something snapped, Link also understood why they left and hastened to follow in their suite.

"Where are _you_ going?" asked the Princess.

"Um... Just for a drink of water?"

"What? You never got thirsty when we were exploring the various temples... Whatever. Just promise me that you'll be back in five minutes when the meeting starts. I don't want to be stuck with a bunch of old farts."

"Ah," *cough, cough* Link clutched his throat and smiled weakly, then rushed out of the room. Midna raised an eyebrow.

"Weird time to get a cough."

* * *

><p>"That was not very nice!"<p>

Midna was pouting on her throne, glaring at her three companions. None of them had returned to support her through the meeting and now, all but one had looks of guilt on their faces.

"We're sorry, Midna! We just didn't want to, uh... Hinder you?" said Link in the most unconvincing tone ever.

"I should have known you weren't thirsty. Now I remember you drinking thirty thousand glasses of that _Pleshk_ juice at lunch."

"Please forgive us." Link was making puppy eyes, causing Kyo to turn away, hiding his own. Midna glared sternly at the Hero, a contest of wills between "cute" and angry. Slowly, without breaking eye contact, the blue woman rose, advanced to within two inches from his face and stopped.

"Five rupees says Midna will kiss him." Kyo whispered to the second Princess.

"No deal, that one's given." she responded.

The two lovers were no longer glaring, rather staring dreamily in each others faces and, indeed, the taller of the two leaned in, pressing her lips passionately against her love's.

It was a wonderful moment of bliss for the two... Unfortunately, it was at that moment that Lady Ratnak, curious about the refusal of her motion to bathe in oil before a council gathering, walked through the doorway and stopped short, her jaw dropping.

Midna pulled back with a "eeep!" of surprise, Zelda froze, Kyo face-palmed and Link just stood there, kissing thin air with his eyes closed. An awkward moment followed.

"Please don't tell anyone!" blurted out Midna with surprising meekness.

"Oh, no worries. We're not _that_ close-minded you know... I'll leave you all to it." She left.

Kyo opened his mouth, but before he could say "I told you so,", Midna thwacked him in the stomach.

"Not one word, Zelda-boy."

Said Princess blushed a little at that.

**Well? Was it as bad as I said? (yes) Also, yay for me writing about girls gossiping about boys, that was... Out of chracter... Anyway, the evil spirit has finally shown his wretched face! What will happen when the time is up? Find out next time, on I've-already-made-this-joke. R&R, please!**


	8. Chapter 7: A Precarious Position

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 7.**  
><strong>Yup, this is the chapter i had so much fun writing. On the other hand, I can start panicking because I no longer have any pre-written chapters left! WRITE WRITE WRITE! As always, thanks to LoZfanbman and Narkloth for their reviews, which I have read with utmost interest and that I can now respond to for I now have regular internet access again! *does a little jig* Anyway, enough of my dancing. Read on...<strong>

**Disclaimer: Still got nothing... Two times in a row, man! I try to drink water and it drips down the left side of my faaaace! (good luck getting _that_ reference)**

Chapter 7: _A Precarious Position_

The quartet stood in the throne-room. Not talking much, simply waiting for something to happen. According to Ghirahim, they had 12 hours to surrender which means that until that time had passed, nothing would happen.

"What time is it?" asked Zelda.

"No idea. About 9 pm, I'd say,"answered Midna, the only person present able to gauge the time without resorting to bodily needs.

"What time will the 12 hours be up?" said Link.

"Exactly 2:37:41 in the morning," Kyo immediately responded.

"In that case, I suggest we go to bed. Nothing will happen until tomorrow anyway..." stated Zelda.

"I agree. Shall we meet back here at 7:30 tomorrow to determine an action plan?" suggested Midna.

"That sounds good to me," they all replied.

Already knowing their way to their respective rooms, they divided up and went to get some much needed sleep.

* * *

><p>Midna lay down on her royal, king-sized bed. She had done her usual night-time preparations: sealing her door, putting on her nightgown, combing her hair and all the other things that girls do before going to bed. For some reason though, she thought something was amiss. There was just one of those feelings... Oh well.<p>

She lay down on her bed, trying to rid her mind of the war to come and thinking instead of other, happier thoughts. She and Link could be together! And, of course, she would have to find a way to trick Zelda into confessing her feelings for and, if possible, to Kyo.

"Maybe I'll use the old "fake letters" trick..." she said to herself as sleep slowly slipped her away.

_She was in a big ballroom. Dancers were jumping and twirling around her. Link was by her side. Shall we dance? Of course. Faster and faster around the room. Uh-oh, we're losing control. Boing! Bouncing off a couple. Boing. Boing. Boing. We need to slow down! We're going to hit the wall! Midna! Midna leave now!_

"LEAVE!"

Midna woke with a start, and in a most unexpected situation. She was laying on her bed, tangled up in the blankets and sheets, while Kyo stood, bracing himself against two assailants that she could nor describe. They had nor armor or weapons, but had long, painful-looking claws that could be extremely lethal. Her defender had latched on to the wrists of both of them and it was he who had shouted at her to get away.

Scrambling to her feet, she jumped back just in time to see her protector get hit hard in the chest, knocking him back onto the bed where she had lain moments before. Rolling to one side, he avoided the follow-up strike and karate-chopped one of the enemies in the neck, causing them to crumple to the floor in a heap. Unfortunately, he was not so lucky with the second attacker.

Even as Kyo blocked a right-handed slash, the left hand of the assailant connected with his face. Letting out a cry of pain, he flew back form the force of the hit and slammed into the wall. Still trying to untangle herself from the sheets, Midna couldn't move as the remaining enemy bore down upon her. By pure luck, she tripped and fell, avoiding the first swipe. However, on the ground and immobilized by fabric, there was no way she could have dodged the second hit.

Luckily, she didn't need to. Before the enemy could recover, Midna saw the blade of a golden sword pierce through the thing's body and with a mighty shriek, it exploded into darkness.

The door exploded, forced open by her captain of the guard, Link and a few other soldiers. They all crowded in the room, securing the area. The Hero was the first to reach Midna and he helped her to her feet.

"What happened? Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine, don't worry. Kyo saved me from these two assassins."

"Two? I think you're imagining things due to stress. There's only one body."

"It exploded and... The sword... And... The sheets... And...

The adrenaline rush started fading, leaving the Princess exhausted and a bit disoriented.

"Well," sighed Link in relief, "At least no one was hurt for now..."

"**Your highness! Sir Kyo is gravely injured! We have to get him to a medical ward immediately!" **called the captain from across the room sounding alarmed.

"**What?"** cried Midna, shocked. The captain moved aside, giving the two lovers full view of Kyo.

He was holding himself up on one knee and spitting up blood and bile. The gashes left on his face by the attack Midna had seen were deep and bleeding profusely. There was also a large cut down his side with even a bit of bone visible through the wound. Before the onlookers eyes, the puddle of vital fluid surrounding him grew larger with every passing second.

"**I've sent Lieutenant Ylesia to get a medical team."**

As though on command, said team also burst through the broken down door (the room was getting pretty crowded now) followed by the aforementioned soldier and a worried light-realm Princess.

Having many years of practice under their belts, the team easily mounted Kyo aboard a gurney and maneuvered him towards the door. On the way out, however, the wounded and dying man grabbed hold of Zelda's arm and whispered:

"Be careful... Still alive... Unconscious... Make sure to restrain him before he wakes up. Don't kill him. Questions..."

Unwilling to wait longer and further diminish their patient's chance of survival, he was rushed out of the room, healers already chanting incantations.

"What happened?" asked the newly arrived monarch, staring nervously at the former door that Kyo had been transported out of.

"I was attacked in the middle of the night. He saved me," answered Midna, looking over at the remaining corpse.

"I think that enemy is still alive," stated Zelda.

"What makes you think that?"

"That's what Kyo told me just now. He said it was unconscious and that we should not kill it, but restrain it so he could question it,"

"**Captain, this thing is still alive. Restrain it using every possible method but do not kill it."**

"**At once, milady," **answered the captain, motioning his men to complete the task and depart. Once they were gone, the three companions were alone in the royal chambers.

"What do you suppose that thing was?" asked Link, retrieving the fallen man's sword from it's resting place.

"I have no idea..." answered Midna shaking her head.

"How could he have gotten so injured? Do you think he'll be alright?" demanded Zelda, biting her lip with concern. The others had no provable answers to give, so give them they did not. After many minutes of silence, all people present lost in their own thoughts, the Twilight Princess rose.

"Well, there is no point in just standing around here. We should secure the entire palace and figure out how those two assassins got into the royal chambers so efficiently."

"Um, Midna? You might want to consider changing first..." pointed out Zelda. The local ruler was still in her nightgown and since the Twilight was generally a rather temperate place, it was quite revealing. Even more so than her usual garb. It was practically transparent...

Realizing her situation, Midna blushed and covered herself up, staring hard at Link who was looking in the opposite direction. Now at least... Zelda giggled.

"At least your guards were professional enough to not fawn over you. Maybe that's why Kyo got hurt so badly: he was distracted," she joked. Her counterpart a shade of dark purple now.

Link, however, turned around at that remark and eyed Midna carefully. "What _was_ he doing in you room anyway? At night. Just the two of you. With you asleep. And in those clothes... ?"

His beloved chuckled. "Obviously you already know what we were doing. Need I say more?

"WHAT!" cried both Hylians, outraged. Zelda began weeping quietly while Link bounced to his feet and gesticulated wildly, unable to speak coherent sentences. Slightly surprised at the intensity of the reaction to her joke, Midna quickly reassured them.

"Calm down! It was a joke, I swear! I have no idea how he got in. Promise!"

Having just knocked over a vase in his wild movements, Link froze, then slowly turned to face his once-again-trusted partner and Zelda looked up, eyes shining brightly with renewed hope.

"And next time," added Ms. "funny", don't break my stuff when you go on a tantrum."

"Well, excuuuuuuuuuuuuse me, Princess," said Link, rolling his eyes.

Crisis averted, the trio calmed down again. "Well then," said the Twilight Princess, "Let's go."

"Midna..."

"Right after I get changed..."

* * *

><p>The two monarchs and the Hero sat in a large room outside the medical ward, which was integrated into the barracks. It was approximately 3:15 am and the healers had still not left Kyo's side. In the hours following the assault on her majesty, the Twilian Army had searched the palace far and wide for any trace of assassins like those in Midna's room.<p>

The tally had already been made. Three nobles had been killed as well as one of the royal councilors. Two others were in critical condition, but expected to survive and a dozen servants had minor injuries. The worst off by far was Kyo and now that guards had been posted everywhere as well as regular patrols circulating in the corridors, his three friends had nothing to do but wait in silence and fear for a verdict to be given.

After what seemed like hours, the healer in charge of the operation came out of the surgery room. Not being one of the select few that spoke Hylian, he addressed his Princess.

"**His immune system is the best I've ever seen. We had to give him blood since he lost so much from his wounds but the actual cuts are practically healed already. They'll leave some nasty scars though. Besides that, there are no other injuries."**

Midna smiled widely. **"Thank you for your efforts. I'm glad to hear that there's no lasting harm."**

"**Umm..." **The healer looked away awkwardly. **"I said no other **_**injuries**_**... There's one big problem... The blade that he was cut with must have been poisoned. We can't seem to find a cure for it. At this rate, he'll live another week if he's lucky."**

Zelda gulped and Link started sweating nervously as Midna when from smiling to a deathly pale in a mater of seconds. The local ruler stumbled backwards into a chair as the healer shook his head sadly.

"**He should wake up from sedation in about five minutes. A nurse will advise you when you can see him,"** he said and he returned to the other room.

"What is it?" asked Zelda worriedly. "What's wrong?"

Midna looked over sadly at her counterpart. She didn't want to be the one to have to tell her this... Of course, she could already tell there was bad news. And given the situation, there couldn't be many other "bad news" choices to be worried about. Gravely, she resolved that there was no other option than to confirm her worries.

"According to the healer," she began, "He sustained no lasting physical wounds besides scars, but has been severely poisoned. They don't expect him to survive another week."

Zelda felt faint. Nearly losing consciousness, she clung to Link's shoulder and the Hero himself did not feel all that good either.

"It makes sense..." said the Hylian male sadly. "All it took was one cut and they would have succeeded in killing their prey whether they survived or not. That way, they had much better chances of succeeding," he continued, speaking of the dark creatures that had attacked that night.

"When will we be able to see him?" Hyrule's Princess demanded.

"As soon as he wakes up from sedation. Any minute now, really," Midna replied.

Talk of the devil! At that precise moment, a diminutive Twilian woman poked her head out the operation room door and said: **"Your highness, Sir Kyo has awoken. You can come speak to him now."**

"**Excellent. Thank you very much, miss."** the Princess replied, then to the other two: "We can go see him now. Follow me."

The trio walked through the swinging doors to a large circular room that was mostly empty of furniture but for a stone-framed bed in the center. The walls, ceiling and floor were adorned with swirling patterns and the words of long healing incantations so as to never forget them in a crisis. On the bed at the center lay Kyo himself and as the three visitors approached, they winced when they saw the extent of damage that had been done.

Across his left cheek and just over his left eye were three prominent scars, still tainted red from the accelerated healing process, stretching from his nose to his temple His shirt had been removed and a large red mark was visible on his lower chest; the wound from the punch that had been delivered. Also visible on his side was a fourth scar running perhaps six inches down his side. Behind this mutilated body stood the head of the department; the one who had had the misfortune of conveying the status of the wounded to the three highest members of the political hierarchy.

Link was the first to speak, simply asking whether or not he felt up to a conversation so soon after waking up. To this, the laying man answered that while his body ached from pain, his mind ached from lack of use, causing the visitors to smile at the classical wittiness of their friend. The next thing they had to discuss would surely not allow them to do so.

"So..." began Midna, "Have they told you that... How should I put this.."

"That I'm badly poisoned and that they can't find a cure?"

"So they told you?" asked Zelda

"No, I can feel the poison myself and from the fact that you seem worried I can surmise that they don't know how to eradicate it from my system."

Link nodded his head. "That's exactly the issue. We all thought you could simply snap your fingers and use your "divine powers" to cure yourself of any infliction."

"Actually, I can under normal circumstances. The problem is that in this case, I intervened in an inappropriate situation and got wounded. I could probably heal myself of the poison but the stress of using such powerful magic for something I'm not supposed to do would kill me anyway."

Midna turned to the healer. **"Are you absolutely sure there is no cure? Why can you not find one?"**

The healer, speaking for the first time, answered: **"We can't well make a cure for something we can't pinpoint. The virus is mutating so fast it would be impossible to create an effective medicine."**

Kyo, having understood everything just said, intervened. **"The virus is not entirely different with each mutation. There is a base that remains the same and which is it's "weak point", so to speak."**

The healer jumped, not expecting the other-worlder to speak his language, but responded: **"That may be true, but the disease itself is like soap. It slips through our spells like it's invulnerable to magic or something."**

"**Actually, that may be true. Ghirahim is certainly powerfully magical enough to create something like that. Allow me to try my own magic. It is far more effective."**

Midna raised and eyebrow. **"Can you do that? Would that not count as magic in "inappropriate situations" as you called it?"**

"**Technically speaking, yes. However, this spell is not a combative spell or defensive, or effective period. It is analytical. The one type of spell I have full reign over since they have no effect besides gleaning information. Allow me a moment."**

Kyo closed his eyes and started mumbling under his breath again. The two that did not understand Twilian stood back, slightly confused at the turn of events and to the two Twili looked at each other hopefully.

After thirty seconds of tense silence, the man with the death sentence's bulging muscles relaxed once again and he opened his eyes.

"**According to my analysis, the virus is _Escherichia Coli_, a violently mutating bacteria that transmits itself through the body by jumping out onto the surface of the skin and getting absorbed in a different location to keep the immune system on edge. Due to it's bacterial nature, it is usually extremely contagious. However," **he added, as the healer and the Twilight Princess jumped backwards, **"This particular variant seems to be designed to immediately lock itself on to the first metabolism it encounters, in this case myself."**

The healer sounded amazed at the description of such a illness. **"That is an incredibly well designed bacteria. The only way to heal it, assuming there is a cure, would be to systematically give you medicine for days, possibly years, until it's all gone and there's none on the surface ready to be absorbed."**

"**Well, you could do that. But there would be a simpler way if there was a liquid cure. Simply soaking my body in it would kill the surface bacteria and the rest of the virus as ****well as the inner ones when they came up."**

"**In other words," **Midna interrupted, **"We would need some sort of anti-bacterial soap that could kill the bad stuff."**

The Hylians, getting tired of being excluded from the happenings, stepped in and obliged the biology club meeting to explain what was going on. After a lengthy explanation, everyone was up to date.

The visitors sighed. Sadly, Zelda asked: "Why couldn't you save Midna without getting hurt? You're an amazing fighter. Are those assassins really that powerful?"

"No. It all comes back to the laws governing me. I did not cause that situation and until I went into combat, I was in no danger whatsoever. There was no loophole to protect me there. And before you say it, no I was not hurt because I was distracted by Midna."

Zelda smirked at the blue Princess, who turned away, blushing again. Link, on the other hand, seized the opportunity to ask the question that had been burning within him for the past hour or so.

"By the way, what _were_ you doing in Midna's room?"

Kyo smiled. "I think you already know the answer to that question," he said, leaving no doubt that he was making the same suggestion as the Twilight Princess had earlier. Being prepared this time, Zelda and Link just stared stoically at the joker whilst Midna giggled.

"I'll be honest," said Kyo, raising an eyebrow, "I expected a more violent reaction."

"I made the same joke when he asked me," Midna explained. "And their reactions were a lot more violent then."

"That's not fair! I'm the one who makes bad jokes and gets beaten up for it."

"Really?" said the Light Princess, surprised. "When was this?"

"About three hundred years ago. Anyway," Kyo explained as he got up, a shirt appearing on him by magic, "To actually answer your question, Link, I had been there for fifteen minutes, waiting for the attack. I thought Ghirahim might retaliate in the dead of night. As a matter of fact, that's most probably the reason he gave us twelve hours instead of twenty-four. He could safely attack us at night, but without coming back on his word. According to my internal clock, the infiltration began at exactly 2:40:16 am, three minutes after the end of our deadline."

"That sneaky scumbag!" cried Link. "He was planning this all along! Good thing you messed his plan up, man."

"Good thing I'm poisoned and on the verge of death?"

"That's not what I meant! You were our star player in this whole ordeal. A super soldier. Without you, the war will be a long one."

"Unless, of course, we find a cure." stated Zelda hopefully. Midna sighed.

"I'm sorry to tell you this, but medicine is largely magical here. To make the liquid cure, we would need to use some sort of plant, which there aren't many of in the Twilight Realm besides a few that we have cultivated since our ancestors brought them with us."

"So in other words," Link summarized, "We would need some sort of plant that we could extract the oil from that has the healing properties that we require."

Midna did not answer. She had suddenly gone rigid, eyes wide. "Of course," she mumbled, "Why didn't I think of it sooner?" And without pausing to explain, she raced out the door as fast as her royal garb allowed.

Link raised an eyebrow. "What was that all about?"

"I don't know," answered Kyo, "But you should go with her and make sure she isn't attacked again."

"Right. See you soon."

Link left, followed by the healer, leaving Zelda alone in the room with Kyo.

"So..."

**So, Kyo is not invincible... Now what? And what on earth is Zelda going to say? And how are they going to heal him? And what is Midna doing? And why did I make this happen? And why aren't you reviewing? R&R, please!**


	9. Chapter 8: Seriously?

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 8.**  
><strong>"<em>Seriously?<em>" as in "what the heck was I smoking when I wrote this?" As per usual, my regards to Narkloth, LoZfanbman and DrinkMePlease for spending their valuable time reviewing my story!**  
><strong>And don't kill me for uploading a day late. Others are much worse than me...<strong>

**Disclaimer: I own Nintendo, but it's a secret to everybody...**

Chapter 8: _Seriously?_

Midna was practically running along the hallways, hurrying to a destination unknown to the young man trying to keep up.

"Hey! Slow down a sec!"

"The flower. Healing... What had she said again?" mumbled the Twilight Princess to herself as she approached the end of her rushed journey. Finally arriving in front of a standard, resident door, she took a deep breath and knocked. Finally managing to catch up, Link was breathing heavily as he leaned up against said door.

"What... Are... We... Doing here?" he asked between huffs. Before his girlfriend could answer, the door unlocked and dissipated, removing his support and letting him fall to the ground at the feet of a very recognizable noble.

**"Umm... I am most sorry, my liege, I do not believe there are proper actions to observe if one opens the door to find the Hero of Twilight at your feet. Perhaps we should define some?"** Lady Ratnak asked, slightly unsure of herself, as she stared down at the spluttering and embarrassed Link who was struggling to get up and holding a skinned elbow.

**"No,"** answered Midna quickly, **"from now on just improvise.** And Link, stop being a baby and get up already! **Listen, councilor, I, uh... was rethinking about your "proposition" having to do with, um... Following in the steps of our ancestors and using that flower oil."**

**"Oh, really?" **exclaimed the noble, suddenly interested.

**"Umm... Yeah! We're ready to approve it, actually."**

**"That's great! I thought it had been rejected?"**

**"Uh... Oh, no! We would never abandon the ways of our ancestors! I was just wondering what those "healing properties" you had mentioned were... ?"**

**"Oh, my! I had no idea you were a coinesewer, milady."**

**"Yes! Absolutely. I a******m ****_**extremely**_****... Well versed in the ****_**art**_**** of flow******er power."**

**"Excellent! Well then, the healing process provided by the essence of **_**Taraxacum Officinale**_**** is a very efficient one against all sorts of skin ailments. The p******rocedure is as follows: First, the flower must be picked between 2:47am and 2:53am. Then, through magical distillation, we extract the liquids. One is an oil, which is essential to protect the person who is being treated. The other is a powerful acid that dissolves bacteria and excess skin. It does this without damaging the **_**normal**_**** sk******in thanks to the thin layer of oil that is exuded into the skin before the acid activates, preventing the molecularly lighter acid to attain it and leaving behind a clean, smooth area."**

**"So it kills bacteria at the surface, correct?"**

**"That's what I just said..."**

**"Great!** Hey Link! I think Kyo's saved!"

"What? How?"

"Well..."  
>...<p>

"That's great!" Link exclaimed, after a hasty explanation.

"Yeah, it is! **Thank you very much, councilor."**

**"So my request has been accepted? Thank you for upholding our traditions, milady!"**

**"Umm... **Ah, crap."

"What is it?" Link asked worriedly.

"I think I just accepted to bathe in oil every day..." Link looked at her, a smiled slowly crawling up his face. "Shut up." *snicker* "You're asking for it, buster..." *chuckle* "I'm warning you!" "AHAHAHAHA"

Link fell to the floor again, clutching his sides and laughing like no Hero has ever laughed before. Midna looked down at him, a most evil idea forming in her mind. Ignoring the loling Link, she addressed her underling.

**"**I am glad you're happy with our decision. Also, as you can clearly see, the Hero of Twilight is doing the ancient, ritualistic oil-bath dance indicating that he would like to participate in this event as well."****

**"**Really?" ****Lady Ratnak replied curiously, ****"It looks like he's just laughing."****

**"**Umm... Yeah, a common mistake. But see how his left foot twitches every 3.14 seconds? That is what differentiates laughing from the traditional, light-dweller oil-dance."****

**"**Really? It would be an honor, Sir Link!"**** exclaimed the councilor, bending down and grabbing the Hero's hand. Still recovering from the hilarity of the moment, he shook her hand, wiping away his tears of laughter. Then realized that the Twili noble was still shaking his hand and talking agitatedly. A dark pit of fear grew in his stomach as he looked over to Midna. She smirked.

"You did not..."

"Oh yeah totally."

"No, no ,no... NOOOOOOOOOO! Don't you love me? Why would you torture me like this? What have I done to deserve this?"

"Don't mess with the Princess, wolf-boy. In any case, we should probably, like, tell Kyo he might not die."

"Yes, let's. Right after I kill myself..."

* * *

><p>Zelda was still standing awkwardly next to Kyo's sickbed, unsure of what to say. Of course, there was one question she wanted to ask him, but she wasn't sure how to aboard the subject without sounding obvious. Throwing caution to the winds, she went for it.<p>

"So... You've been around for a while now, right?"

"Thousands of years. I lost track in the 14th century, which was long before the Hero of time's birth."

"You must have met... Some interesting people..."

"Aside from the three Goddesses and my Master, I haven't actually contacted more than a few dozen people."

Zelda stared at him, wide-eyed. "What did you do all those years?"

"For the most part, meditating, close-combat training and magical development."

"For thousands or years?"

"Indeed."

"Didn't you get... Bored?"

"Certainly. All the time in fact. That's when I would visit the sacred realm and pay the Goddesses a visit."

_Uh oh... How can I compete against Goddesses?_ Thought the Princess worriedly.

"So you can, like, travel freely to the heavens?"

"In spirit only. The one time I met them personally was at my creation."

_Whew, crisis averted._

"But... Have you never wished to... Fall in love?"

Kyo seemed to think about that for a moment. Then responded: "The Goddesses, when the world was first populated, asked me the same question. And I believe my answer stays the same: yes, but no. Loving and being loved is one of the greatest parts of life. But therein lies the problem. It is a part of _life_. Being immune to aging, I would certainly outlive a loved one. It would be far more difficult to have a relationship knowing that that person would only be present in a miniscule fraction of my life."

"But what about now. You're on the verge of dying so immunity to age wouldn't be a problem!"

"But I will die. I could not make that person suffer through loving me then leaving me so soon."

"And what if the other person didn't mind?"

"You would..."

Before Zelda could quite grasp what he said, the door to the infirmary blasted open and the happy couple of Link and Midna hurried in, smiling wildly.

"Hey, guess what?" said Link.

"Kyo's death warrant has been suspended!" finished Midna happily.

"Really! That's... That's..." gasped the light ruler, searching for words. Her counterpart snickered.

"Good? Great? Awesome? Outstanding? Amazing?"

"All of the above!" she responded with spunk. The three long-time friends smiled over to the sick man, who was still laying on the bed, as expressionless as ever.

"Oh come on! You're not going to _die_. Work those cheek muscles!" exclaimed the Hero.

"I am smiling," Kyo replied stoically, "This is my "happy" face."

"That's no way to show your appreciation for me and Link having to go through so much to heal you!" Midna said in mock-shock.

"Considering your face, I think I'd prefer _you_ not smile either. It was a subtle hint that-OOMF!" The two hylians laughed as the temperamental Twilight Princess hit the other hard in the stomach, causing him to lose his wind and cringe up into a ball, clutching his chest.

"Don't pretend you even felt that! I know how strong you are..." the violent woman glowered.

"Ribs..." grunted Kyo through his teeth, indicating the spot where he had been hit. Two times today already.

"... Oops... Sorry..." Midna apologized meekly. She had totally forgotten that he still was mending physical wounds as well as the poison.

"Hey Midna," asked Link between puffs of laughter, "How do you know how _strong_ he is?" His comment causing both light-dwellers to burst out laughing again.

"Can it, wolfy." warned the local monarch, then getting into the spirit of things: "He was certainly better than _you_." This had the dual effect of sobering Link straight up and causing Zelda to nearly fall over, only remaining upright by catching herself on the edge of the bed.

"... Really?"

Midna sighed, rolling her eyes. "You _know_ that can't be true. When we- You know what? I'm not even going to explain this. Let's change the subject, shall we?"

"Yeah, like getting me a bedroom." suggested Kyo, struggling to get to his feet.

"Oh, so the ultimate algorithm of power and wisdom _does_ need a bed?"

"If only for recuperative reasons. An immune system if more efficient over a long period of time if the mind is not directly active."

"Fine, but let's eat lunch first, ok?" asked the Hero, his midriff emanating a low growling sound.

* * *

><p>After leading the poisoned man to his new dwelling, Midna ordered some food brought up to the room and they all made themselves comfortable, preparing for what would be a tactical war meeting.<p>

"So," said Zelda, cutting up a piece of meat that _looked_ like Ordon goat steak, but that she didn't really want to ask what it was, "Explain to us how it is that Kyo's not going to die."

"Well, you see..." began Midna, looking in disgust at her boyfriend who was greedily ripping the meat of the bone and wolfing it down...

The Twilight Princess explained the situation, leaving out the part where she and Link were doomed to be-oil themselves because she just _knew_ that Kyo would have some smart-ass comment to make and by the time she had finished, Link was greedily eyeing her own piece of meat.

As Midna quickly devoured her meal to save it from the horrors of a certain light-dweller's stomach and said light-dweller's ears drooped, Zelda thought about what had just been explained to her. Not seeing any inconveniences in the suggested course of action (and being very excited), she posed the following question:

"Where are these plants then? We should just commence the healing process immediately."

"Oh! Umm... I'm not sure... We'll have to ask Lady Ratnak for more information."

And do that they did. The woman in charge summoned a guard and demanded that the councilor in question be led to them. The guard complied, leaving the quartet to finish eating in relative silence.

When Lady Ratnak entered the room, the quartet had already finished their meal. As they invited the fifth arrival to take a seat, the Lady asked what she could do for them.

**"**Basically,"**** explained Midna,****"We would like to know where the ****_**Taraxacum Officinale **__**grows. **_**We need to acquire some to hea- To help soften Sir Kyo's skin."**

While Kyo himself rolled his eyes, the fifth nodded understandingly.

"**I certainly can understand his desire. It is the dream of so many... Unfortunately, until we get rid of this "Ghirahim" person, our supplies are cut off."**

"What!" exclaimed the Twilight Princess, causing the Hylians to relapse into fear. Recomposing herself, she asked: **"What do you mean by "cut off"? Do we have none in the palace?"**

"**Never, milady. It was only ever grown in the precise spot out forefathers laid the first seeds."**

"**Which is where?" **questioned the monarch, waiting for the blow to fall.

"**Just on the outskirts of town, to the east."**

"**That's on the complete other side!"**

"**Yes. Why? Is it so urgent for Sir Kyo to soften his skin?"**

"**Well, in a sense it is... Thank you for your time, councilor. You are dismissed."**

"**No problem, my liege. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask."**

Curtsying deeply to both Princesses and the Hero, she left the room, sealing the door delicately behind her.

"S-so, what's th-the bad ne-news?" asked Zelda, trying to sound casual

"Why don't you tell them for a change..." sighed Midna. Kyo smiled, closing his eyes

"Because I'm too damn lazy."

**Well, that was a fairly short chapter... I do hope you all enjoyed it! Especially since I finished writing it literally 23 minutes ago and my beta-reader-ish guy hasn't seen it yet (notice I wait until the _end_ of the chapter to tell you that :D). So yeah... Until next time!**


	10. Chapter 9: Stealth mode: yawn

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 9.**  
><strong>It's 2 am now, so I'll make this quick. *yawn* Thanks to James Birdsong, Ruce and DrinkMePlease *yawn* for their reviews and all that. Another *yawn* short-ish chapter that I just now finished. I've just been too busy playing *yawn* Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask to get any real work done. *yawn* But I think this one is actually pretty good. But since I'm *yawn* half-asleep, I can't judge that too well. So enjoy!<strong>

**Disclaimer: I'll sell you Nintendo in *yawn* exchange for a bed**

Chapter 9: __Stealth Mode, Engaged__

Three black figures snuck across the palace courtyard, anxious to not be seen. There was no way they could exit through the gates without alerting the enemy, so they would have to rappel over the wall. Luckily, these people were well prepared. As the center figure pulled out his clawshots, the other two grabbed hold of him and with a well-aimed shot, the three were propelled to the outside land.

As they had planned beforehand, they made their way to about 20 meters from the entrance to the palace and huddled down, scanning the area. With no enemies in sight, the cloaked being on the left rolled forward and sprinted to the town lying perhaps another fifty yards away. Assuring that no enemies were present, Princess Zelda used a small amount of magic to flash twice across the night to were her companions were waiting.

Seeing the double flash, Link nodded to Midna and together, in perfect sync, they ducked as low as possible and ran to join up with the source of the light. For obvious reasons, the trio no longer wore their usual garb, a white dress and green outfit would have been far too visible and they also wanted Midna to be as concealed as possible. Instead, they borrowed their attire from Kyo since he had a penchant for guises eclipsing him in the night.

Not talking for fear of attracting attention, the three slinked from shadow to shadow making as little noise as possible. The place Lady Ratnak had pointed out to them was, damn irony, on the exact opposite side of the city. To get there, they would have to traverse the place without getting spotted by Ghirahim's guards. They had been lucky so far, only hearing far-off conversations. But considering they weren't even half-way there yet, that would surely change... Damn irony... Just as the trio approached the center of town, marking the middle of the trip, Midna suddenly motioned the others to stop, then beckoned them forwards for a better look.

The central plaza was normally empty at this time of night. However, two tall, shadowy beings walked silently in circles around the statue of the founding fathers. "Hey guys," whispered Link, "Aren't those the same creatures that poisoned Kyo and killed all those other people?"

"I think you might be right, Link. They have the same, claw-like hands and fingers..." answered his girlfriend.

"In that case," murmured Zelda, "We have to be very careful not to get injured by one..."

They all surveyed their surroundings, searching for a relatively easy and safe path past the guards. It took about 30 seconds for Link to nudge the other two and point to two balconies that stretched out, possibly close enough for them to jump the gap. Zelda raised an eyebrow questioningly and Midna responded by motioning to the house against which they were leaning. Zelda made an "o" with her mouth, then led the way stealthily to the front door.

As most of the doors in the twilight, this one was magically locked. Luckily for the three wannabe ninjas, the Twilight Princess had the equivalent of a total green-card pass within her kingdom. Murmuring a few words, softly so as to not alert the guards, the door magically dissolved.

As three random strangers dressed in black burst into the house, the owner, his wife and their daughter and son jumped back in surprise. "What does Lord Ghirahim want this time?" asked the son aggressively.

"Calm yourself, good citizens," soothed Midna, revealing her face to the astonishment of the onlookers. "We simply require the use of your upstairs balcony so as to evade the two guards that lurk in the plaza."

"Of course, your highness!" exclaimed the senior man, apologizing profusely for his son's misinterpretation of a monarch "Right this way, please."

The family led them up to the second floor of their homestead, unlocked the balcony and ushered them to continue their quest, promising to be around if and when they came back the same way. After a few handshakes, they returned to the first floor and the trio in black began inching their way to the edge. Link was the first to reach farther-most point to which the balustrade extended. Carefully peeking down, he gauged the jump and the noise it would produced and ascertained that he, at least, could probably make it.

Being the most experienced with preforming dangerous jumps (especially after the sky temple), the decision was unanimous that the Hero would be the first to risk it. The other two stood behind, backs against the wall, as Link backed up to make the leap. Running a softly as possible, the man took a leap of faith over the gap and, by instinct honed from hundreds of hours of adventuring, rolled as he landed, a jump practically soundless.

The extreme subtlety of the jump was not remarked by the two guards down below. Now, however, came the difficult part: getting the duo of Princesss... Princessi... Princessopodes... Whatever! Across the gap as well. Not an easy task considering they were no where near in as good shape as the Hero. Never-the-less, they would have to try. Taking a deep breath, the two took a running start and leaped, much less gracefully, to the other side, using Link's mushy body to soften their fall, much to his discontent.

It was a good thing the Hero didn't cry out when two bodies collapsed onto him or that would have been cause for the guards to become suspicious, which, for now, they weren't. The two woman's jumps, while not perfect, did not create enough noise to alert them to the intruders presence. Grumbling silently, Link led his friends across and into the next house.

Once again unlocking the door, Midna was the first to enter the domicile. In this one, it seemed, everyone was already asleep. _"___Come to think of it,___" _thought Zelda,_ "___Why were the others up this late... Better not think about it.___"_

Creeping silently out, they found themselves on the opposite side of the plaza they had been avoiding all this time. Content to have passed their first test, the three continued carefully on their way, aware that others might lurk ahead. And lurk they did. Luckily, none of the other guards seemed to be on fixed patterns, making them much easier to avoid. The light Princess took the lead after they discovered she had a strange affinity for stealth.

Finally arriving at their destination, they took the time to look around and assure the desertedness of the area.

* * *

><p>Kyo slowly got up. He had a purpose, but he would need to do it alone. If not, he would lose control over the current situation, and that would not be good... For anyone. Ignoring the dull ache in his nearly-healed ribs, he headed out of his rooms and in the direction of the dungeons.<p>

No one stopped him on his way, for he strode with a confident air. Once again, he marveled at how easily Twili and Hylians could forget something when distracted and this time, twas the assassin prisoner that had been taken.

He had promised his "friends" that he would interrogate him after that accursed fight, but had never reminded them of it, for it was not time. Now, however, it was. With them gone to find medicine, he would be able to have a private chat with his would-be killer and that was the only thing on his mind now.

Entering the prison, which he remembered very well from his own escape, he saluted the first few guards and moved on to the captain who was patrolling the corridor.

"**I wish to speak with the assassin that attacked Princess Midna. Alone, if possible,"** he demanded, seeming much more somber than usual. The captain, noticing this, nodded dutifully, saying:

"**Naturally, Sir. Be careful though, considering what you're already going through..."**

"_Apparently, everybody knows I'm sick,_" sighed Kyo to himself, on the outside nodding determinately. In response, the captain called over one of his underlings and borrowed from them a key, which he subsequently used to unlock one of the cells.

The cell in question was barren, occupied only by the restrained figure of one of the shadowy beings that he had defended Midna from. Motioning an "affirmative" to the doorman, he was shut inside.

"Do you speak our language?" he asked harshly, electing no response. Doubtful, but willing to admit it may speak a __different__ tongue, he tried again. **"Do you speak our language?"** Many times. "Ed oyo upeas kou ranguagl? Doh u sapek hur lgnaague? WL bLf hkvZp Lfi ozmtfZtv?" Still, nothing.

His fears slowly confirming themselves, the wielder of the golden blade used the only method of communication left to him: magic. Obviously, directly communicating with the fiend would not work, so it was time to analyze his very soul. For Kyo, anything that was bound to the worlds could be dissected and reassembled through the power of his Triforce. Taking a solid stance, he balanced his body and mind, before delving into that of another.

As per usual with such types of magic, the transitional feeling was trippy, but with strength of mind, he ignored it. There it was. What he had most feared for the population of the Light and Twilight realms: the absence of soul. They had theorized that the poison on the blades may have been manipulated by Ghirahim, but now it was proven. Not only did he create the poison, but also the creature itself. It had been summoned by the enemy warlock in its entirety to be more swift, talented and stealthy than any mere mortal could be without years of training. And evil now possessed an infinite supply of them.

Realization hit him like a megaton hammer. Ghirahim had only been stalling for enough time to create a massive army of slaves to storm the palace walls and destroy everything. The assassination attempt had merely been a side-act. Something far too conveniently solved since one of the more influential people knew the cure, which meant...

Face frozen, muscles tense, Kyo impaled the being with his sword, exploding it, and ran out of the cell, smashing down the door. **"IT'S A TRAP!"** he called out, then began rallying the troops for battle.

* * *

><p>The area seemed clear of enemies, suggesting that the trio would be able to move on. The greenhouse they had to enter was on the opposite side of the street, not even 10 meters away. Being even more careful than before since they were so close to the goal, the group of friends, snuck across the ground, across the road. Good thing they did, too.<p>

Arriving on the other side, a couple of twilian guards came into view on the inside of the building. In retrospect, the ninjas should probably have guessed something was fishy if Ghirahim specifically positioned real men where the poison's cure was, but at the time it did not cross their minds that the whole thing could have been planned.

"What should we do?" whispered Midna, "If we try do get the plants, they'll see us!"

"We'll have to knock them out simultaneously." suggested Link, "I have two clawshots, one for each head. It'll make noise, but if there's just the two of them, no one will notice."

That being the best plan they could come up with, they determined that Midna would stay outside to alert the other two if an enemy approached while Link rolled in a took both guards down with his grapples. Zelda's role was to actually jump inside at the same time as Link and grab as many plants as she could. OK, in position.

The Twilight Princess gave the all-clear sign and the hylians leaped into action. Executing his roll perfectly, the Hero came up on one knee and shot his weapons with 100% accuracy as his Princess also rolled in and jumped for the small plants littering the floor. She was yanking up as many as she could, not knowing how many would be needed to cure her friend, but a gasp and a shout alerted her that something was not right. Looking up, the problem became clear: the clawshots had never hit the guards. Instead, they rebounded off some sort of magical shield and fell, useless, to the ground.

The guards, not being complete idiots, after all, immediately raised the alarm by shouting and ringing a loud bell. It was then that the trio realized that had been had.

"RUN!" yelled Link, grabbing Zelda by the arm and dashing back towards the relative safety of the palace.

**I had a really long outro *yawn* that I wanted to say, but I'll do that some other *yawn* time. Remember: If you don't review, I'll send my army of poisoned beasts after you ahaha *yawn* That wasn't funny. Good night...**


	11. Chapter 10: Failure

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 11.**  
><strong>So, um... Yeah. I was a bit busy last week with easter and all. Plus watching the live stream of PAX east, playing MM, WW and Zelda II. In the end, I just didn't have a lot of time. But now I'm back an better than ever! And I'll finally write that super-long outro I was going to last time. For now, though, I would like to thank DrinkMePlease, anderew and LoZfanbman for their awesome reviews and the bman's concern for my well-being (at least until the story is over) and hope you enjoy this chapter!<strong>

Chapter 10: _Failure_

"**Captain, we're going to have to lower the gates to let them in."**

"**I still can't believe those three left the confines of the palace without our permission..."**

"**Technically, they didn't. The Hero of Time was promoted to general, was he not? So they **_**did**_** have the military's permission."**

Kyo and the captain of the guard were standing, along with the rest of the army, in the central courtyard. As soon as they figured out what was happening, they called out a massive red alert and assembled the army to repel the invaders that were sure to come. But, of course, they weren't about to lock three of the most important people in the world out of their own palace to get massacred. Thus, the captain signaled the gate-keeper and he removed the support keeping the doors shut tight allowing them to be pulled open.

"**It's going to be difficult..."** the Twili pointed out.

"**Indeed," **replied the man at his side, **"But do not forget that we need only close the door as quickly as possible. Once that is done, not many will be able to enter."**

**"I suppose you're right, in a sense."**

**"I always am," **then to the gate guardians, **"Get ready. We're going to need precision here."**

**"Right Sir! Yes Sir!" **they all replied in unison.  
>The rest of the army stood, restless but at attention, behind the two leaders. According to the contingency plan that had been established in a couple of seconds after Kyo's enlightenment, they were to allow the three goodies in, destroy the baddies that got in in the process and do everything they could to get the gates closed as quickly as possible. They had also been warned, of course, of the severe consequences of getting cut by the blade-arms of the shadow beings. Finally, the plan was that if ever Ghirahim himself showed up, it was up to Kyo to distract him and, if possible, destroy him despite his injuries.<p>

For now, however, the Princesses and the Hero were no where in sight. That is, not in sight for the Twili. Soon, with his augmented sight, Kyo spotted his three friends running full speed towards them. It seemed his theory had been confirmed. **"Here they come!"** he yelled out calmly to his fellow soldiers, pulling out his own blade. He would fight. He would not have the additional power of the Goddesses and God on his side, but that didn't mean he wasn't a good fighter without them. Sharing a glance with the captain, he steeled himself for battle.

* * *

><p>"Whose... Idea... Was this?" Princess Zelda yelled to her friends as they ran as fast as their feet could carry them away from a horde of shadow beings dotted with the occasional Twili rebel. Neither of the other two answered her, being too busy running themselves. Link, being the more athletic of the three was up front, ideas racing through his head about how to get out of this situation without endangering the palace residents. Zelda herself was next, motivated from the feel of the healing flowers still clutched in her hand and the thought of the safety of his presence. Midna brought up the rear for, as the Hero would be sure to remind her every chance he got, she had not gotten any exercise from her previous adventure since she took advantage of a certain Hylian's free transport system the entire time. Thus, she was the least fast of the trio.<p>

They pretty much ran the same way back as they had creeping there. They rushed past the central plaza, ignoring the looks of terror on the faces of the nice family that had helped them before as they just barely avoided getting trounced by a mini ambush comprising of the two enemies they had jumped over last visit. Along the streets, side and main, they went, amassing a larger and larger following the entire time, until they reached the boundries of the town and began the last stretch of sprint to the open doors.

"_Wait, open? Thank the Goddesses to whoever figured out this was a trap and alerted the rest. Of course the only person that _could_ have know it was a trap is Kyo, so that's pretty much the same thing as just thanking him..._" sighed Midna, adrenaline rushing back into her system.

* * *

><p>The captain of the guard nodded to the two gate guardians and they both prepared themselves to force the doors shut amidst a mass of attackers. Kyo held up a hand, watching the runners closely as they got closer and closer until...<p>

**"They're in!"** he cried, motioning with his hand.

Indeed, they had finally managed to reach the safety of the Twilight Palace. Completely out of breath, they fell to the ground, huffing and puffing, as the troops braced themselves. "Almost there, almost there..." mumbled Kyo as he observed the rate of closure of the gate in proportion to the distance of the enemy. It would be close... The gate was closed. They were safe.

**"Wait, the lock!"**

Oh, crap.

The doors were blasted open again by the sea of enemies forcing their way in. The gate-keepers, caught in the way of the blast, were struck down and trampled as the battle commenced. Forced to their feet yet again, the two princesses pulled back and the Hero prepared for a long, tedious fight.

The first thing on Kyo's mind was to get the doors closed again - locked this time. To do that, though, he would have to avoid a huge amount of hits and force the doors closed despite being forced open from the opposite side. Luckily for the defenders, Ghirahim's army had obviously not been prepared to be met by such resistance. Thus, the first wave of intruders was easily suppressed. However, if the gates were not soon closed, there would be chaos.

"**Captain, get the gates! I'll distract them!"** called out Kyo, deftly dodging and slicing an enemy in half.

"**Yes sir!"** he answered, then motioned to two other soldiers to follow him to the front lines.

"Right then... Distractions... What to do? Got it." Already putting his idea into action, he jumped into the air and began... Hovering.

Link stared in awe as his friend on the battlefield stood on air in the center of attention, his entire body glowing red. He soon made complicated and deliberate hand movements and further added to the overall impressiveness of the display by shooting multicolored projectiles from his very skin.

From the moment he had began, everyone had been focusing solely on him, enemies included for they feared the power he demonstrated. Feared, that is, until they realized that he was, in fact, not harming them in any way. Following that enlightenment, they resumed their barbaric charge.

"Damn. I was hoping it would last longer... Only thing left is to fight, I suppose," thought Kyo, and he lurched downward, sword poised, and speared a shadow being's head clear through. Recovering quickly, he spun and sliced another in half. And so the battle raged. Around him, the world was but a frenzy of blades, friend and foe, to destroy or protect, felling one monster after another until...

"WATCH OUT!" Link yelled, scooping up the bow of a fallen ally and shooting a precise shot directly into the heart of a beast that was about to impale his friend.

"Thanks!" answered aforementioned friend, finishing off his current opponent. Coming back-to-back, fighting like brothers, the Hero of Time and the bearer of the fourth Triforce slew all who stood in their path. Like a raging cyclone, they cleared out a large area in no time. But trouble still stalked.

Just as it seemed like nothing could destroy the perfectness of their teamwork, a shadow fell between them. And by "shadow", of course, I mean none other than Ghirahim himself. Like a bird of prey swooping down on it's victim, he arrived from the sky, cutting apart the duo of fighters.

"Well, well. You're quite the soldier, aren't you? We could use your kind of talent on the good side of this war," he proposed to Kyo. Of course, since their last meeting had involved Kyo impersonating Princess Zelda, there was no way he could have know they had already met.

"Not today, not ever," replied Link's friend.

"Sigh, what a shame. I guess I'll have to kill you then..."

"Feeling the deja-vu last time you told that to Link?"

"Shut up, pest. And burn in hell!" screamed the evil entity in rage as he pounced at the cocky jerk that dare taunt him.

"You lose," smirked Kyo, grabbing onto Ghirahim's face and letting out a blood-curdling roar.

It was as though time had frozen around the two battlers. Neither moved for neither could move. Brighter than the light of the light world's sun, a halo of shining silver light burst forth from the end of Kyo's hand and the face it was latched on to, blinding all in the vicinity. And yet, the light faltered...

And died.

The sudden change in power level, shot the good guy back like a cannon, while barely affecting the enemy leader; causing only extreme fatigue. Huffing and puffing, Ghirahim looked around only to realize that he was alone. The captain had sealed the gate and the Twilian Army had dealt with the few remaining lackeys, leaving him to take on the entire armed forces by himself.

"Don't think this is over," he growled, addressing everyone present. "You obviously figured out my strategy, but tomorrow that will not matter in the slightest. Tomorrow, my full army will storm this hideaway. An army large enough to simply smash down the walls and take by brute force what is rightfully the property of my master and thus MINE! You'll regret the day you challenged the will of Ghirahim!" and just like last time, he snapped his fingers and disappeared.

"Uh. That was... More potent than I expected..." grumble Kyo, lifting himself from the ground while his friends rushed to his side.

"Why did your spell fail? Was it because he was attacking you?" Link asked, to which the man simply shrugged.

"Well," sighed Midna, "At least we got the cure."

Zelda, who had as of yet been quiet, suddenly burst into tears. "Uh-oh..." said Link.

"I dropped it! I dropped the cure! The plant! We had just gotten back in and when the attack started something shoved me and I dropped it and one of those shadow thingies trampled it! I can't believe it! You all risked your life for nothing because I was stupid enough to drop a plant!" From that point onward, her sobs became incoherent and Midna and Link's efforts to try and comfort her only resulted in her running away, back to inside the palace.

The Twilight Princess shook her head sadly. "I think she might need some time to herself. To sort out her feelings. We should try again tomorrow..."

"Probably," agreed the Hero. "Kyo, I'm sorry we couldn't get the cure. As I'm sure you figured out, it was all a hoax."

"I promise, the best healers in the realm will be trying to find a cure before your time runs out," assured Midna, wiping a tear from her eye.

"No worries," answered Kyo, though somewhat nervously, "If worst comes to worst, I will simply have to accept my destiny, as it was designed."

"That's a pretty dark destiny if you ask me..." sighed Link.

"In the mean time, there is nothing to do but solidify our defenses and hope we can last the morning," nodded Kyo.

"And at that time, it will be an honor to fight alongside you," affirmed the hylian, shaking his hand.

There was nothing else they could possibly do. For the second time in three days, the residents of the palace would have to wait and hope. Hope that the attack the following day would not be large enough to consume them in darkness. Archers were place all along the fortified walls and temporary guard tents were mounted in the front entrance. Everything was ready and all were sound asleep, waiting for the big day. Well... Maybe not all.

* * *

><p>Kyo slowly entered the room were he knew Princess Zelda to be crying quietly. Her own room, in fact. Out on the balcony that overlooked the endless plummet of the Twilight realm.<p>

"May I join you?" he asked politely, causing her to jump a bit, but she nodded. For a moment, the two simply stared out, contemplating the mysteries of time and space.

"What happened today," began the man, breaking the ice, "was an accident."

"And? I still let you down. I still forced you, Midna, Link and every one of those soldiers to risk their lives for absolutely nothing. I still failed to bring you a cure."

"But you did so with good intentions."

"I know that. That doesn't change the way people feel about it."

"It changes the way I feel about it."

"..."

"Let me ask you this: as a Princess, did you expect to go through your reign never making a single mistake?"

"As few as possible, I should hope..."

"The imperative words there being "as possible". There is no way in life to ensure you can make a right decision at a right time."

"But this wasn't a decision! It was an action!"

"But it applies for actions just as well. The past is past. There is no possible way to change it. It is better to simply forgive and forget."

"But what if I make another mistake like that? Giving me any sort of responsibility after that would be like encouraging me to fail..."

"And here is were the good intentions come in. If your intentions truly are good, you should not feel enticed to make further mistakes."

"But... Why? Why something so stupid? Look at me!" she chuckled sadly, "I can't even carry a plant around."

A pause.

"If it makes you feel any better, it took me three years to be able to focus my mind on only one thing. In the midst of battle, it is no surprise you weren't as attentive."

"And because of that, you're going to die..."

Suddenly, she clasped his hand.

"Please. I know you said you did not want to love if you were doomed. But let me love you," she begged, leaning in for a kiss.

"I'm sorry... I must follow the path chosen for me..." Kyo replied, holding her at arm's length, then he let himself fall back, over the ledge, and out of sight.

If one listened clearly, they could hear the sounds of quiet sobbing throughout the night.

**So, you can see why I named this chapter "Failure"... Four times in a row, man! Anyway, I'm actually leavong for Europe in about 10 minutes and unfortunatly I probably won't have an internet connection for the next two weeks. Now fret not, I have arranged for my beta-reader-ish guy to upload chapter 11, which I plan on writing during the 9 hour flight, for me next weekend. I just say this so that no one is surprised if I don't answer any reviews or PMs until the 30th unless I find free wi-fi. On another note, I wish to anounce that this is the next-to-last chapter in this fic. Then there's the epilogue, the epi-epilogue and maybe a "X years later" thing if I feel like it. After it's over, I'll mainly be working on my other story "Aura Sect", but if anyone has any ideas for another LoZ fic or something else I might like, I look forward to your suggestion. Also, since I won't be A/Ning the final chapter, I'd like to thank all readers and reviewers past, present and futur for their support and advice. You guys rock. Finally, I wanted to know what you guys think of Kyo as a character? I don't know if I made him too present in the story or too odd, so I'd appreciate feedback on that if you have time. Oops, my taxi's here! Got to go, bye!**


	12. Chapter 11: Dark Destiny

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 11.  
><strong>**So yeah, the final chapter. I'm commenting this from Greece so I will keep it short: Thanks to LoZfanbman and Chels for their reviews and to all those who favorited and alerted this story not just now, but all along the creative process. It really made me proud of what I had managed to create. Thank you all. That said, enjoy.**

Chapter 11: _Dark Destiny_

"When he said "huge", I didn't think he meant _this_ huge..." gulped Princess Zelda as she stood side by side with Link, Hero of time, in front of the area that would soon host the largest battle in recorded history.

"We can take them. We _must_ take them. For all that is good and just in both the worlds," he responded.

Somewhere over enemy lines, a horn blared. The captain of the guard turned to his troops. **"FOR JUSTICE, AND FOR THE PRINCESS!"** And Armageddon began.

The time had come when fated men must needs fall there.

* * *

><p><em>Fifteen minutes earlier...<em>

"Whatever you do during the fight, just make sure it's not stupid, okay? Being the Hero doesn't mean being invincible."

"I know that, Midna. It not like I'm new to the whole idea. You just make sure you stay safe. If any of those assassins get inside the walls of the palace, come and find me or Kyo, preferably both, out on the battlefield. Odds are you'll actually be safer there."

"What about Zelda?"

"..."

"She seemed really sad when I saw her this morning. I think something must have happened between her and Kyo..."

"Is this really the time to be discussing her love life? We _do_ have a war to win here..."

"I think it's important to remember that even in the darkest of times, there is always something normal to talk about."

"Normal being that the Princess of the realm of light being rejected by a godly swordsman who happens to be blessed with the power of a fourth Triforce?"

"Something like that."

Before Link could say something extremely sarcastic, they were interrupted by none other than the two objects of their conversation, one of whom was dragging the other along with him.

"Well, he's here," announced Kyo, letting go of Zelda and looking the other two in the eyes. "And even by my standards, his army is huge."

"Right," said Link, "It's showtime."

He turned around and began running to the front gates, but was stopped and nearly killed as two shadow beings smashed out of one of the doors leaving the area. Skills honed, he blocked the first strike and back-flipped out of range.

"Get behind me," Kyo murmured to the two monarchs, reaching down to his boots. "Link, distract them. I have a plan!"

Leaving the Hero to deal with the enemies on his own, he took out two small daggers from the insides of his footwear. "What are you going to do?" whispered Midna.

"Throw them," replied Kyo.

"Are you insane! You might hit Link! Your accuracy isn't boosted."

"I don't need the boost. Remember, I trained for eons," he smiled briefly, then brusquely threw the knife over Link's shoulder, directly into the beast's forehead. It let out a cry of shock, then dropped and dissolved like the others. The second, realizing it's companion had been defeated, used it's final resort and jumped onto Link, tackling him to the ground.

_Now_ Kyo could not aim properly. And he wasn't ready to risk it either. On the other hand, the shadow would at any moment slide one of his blades along the Hero's skin, dooming him. What to do, what to do... "_Well, the poison will kill me eventually anyway, so might as well go for it._"

In a moment of sheer epicness, Kyo re-unsheathed his blade and jumped through the air, diving into the mass of flailing arms and legs. No one saw what happened during the brief, but intense battle, but at it's conclusion the enemy exploded and Kyo now had several other gleaming slashes on his already mutilated torso. Link was unharmed, though now very agitated.

"Well, that deals with that I guess," shrugged Kyo, brushing himself off.

"Deals with that?" exclaimed the Hero, "The enemies are at the gates and they've infiltrated the palace! We have to keep Midna safe!" he cried, reaching for her hand and gesturing frantically around.

"No. I'll protect her. You go with Zelda to the battlefield!" answered his friend, blocking his path .

"No! It's my duty to protect her! I... I love her! Move aside!" he yelled, attempting to force his way around and to his girlfriend. Kyo needed the man to see the light. Smacking him hard in the head, the Hero stumbled backwards, shocked.

"I know you do," affirmed the man who punched him, "But I will be able to protect her better than you thanks to my Triforce and you know it. Your skill with a sword and Zelda's with a bow will be needed on the front. I promise to you on my life that she will be safe with me. Now GO!"

The two hylians hesitated for a moment, then the light Princess nodded and they both fled towards where the battle would soon take place.

* * *

><p>"Come on in here. We'll hide for now..."<p>

Kyo and Midna ducked inside a small room off the eastern side of the palace. They had heard the blaring of the horn signaling the beginning of the battle and decided to lay low until either something happened or one side took advantage over the other. For some reason though, the man seemed uncharacteristically serious. And that was saying something. Could it have something to do with Zelda being depressed as well? She would find out here and now.

"I noticed Zelda seemed a little down today. Did you talk to her?"

"Naturally."

"And?"

"I told her the truth."

"Which was?"

Kyo looked out the window to the east. The truth was irrelevant. Unless he did what he had to, they would lose the war. No spell had ever failed him, not in the past, not yesterday, and it wouldn't that day.

"I'm sorry, Midna. I hope you'll forgive me. When you yourself become immortal in death, perhaps you will understand my actions." He closed his eyes. The Twilight Princess looked at him questioningly, but before she could ask he spun around and struck her hard in the head. Her last though before she fainted was "_Traitor. Why did we trust you?_"

* * *

><p>Ghirahim followed up with his army. They had, though with slightly more casualties than predicted, smashed the gates and engaged in close-combat with the putrid race that was the Twili. His creations were doing well.<p>

But wait! There was one portion that did not seem to be going as well as the others... He needed a better view. And what better view than atop the palace that would soon be his? Teleporting himself to the roof, he looked down upon the conflict with mild interest.

It was that damn Hero of Time messing up his plans _again_. This time, the peasant girl Zelda was helping him. Well, it probably didn't really matter considering the sheer force he had brought. It would be fun watching them squirm...

He settled down to observe the massacre, but before he could get comfortable there was a loud shattering noise on the roof. Looking around, he spotted the Princess of the land, Midna was her name, standing sword in hand at the edge of a hole she had evidently made herself.

"Ah, Princess," he welcomed, "Have you come to surrender?"

"Never."

"Yet your defense is falling, your men are dieing and your loved one is risking his life... Perhaps you ought to... Reconsider."

She ground her teeth in determination and readied her sword. "You shall not harm the Twili for the holy power still flows through my veins!"

And their swords clashed.

There was no doubt both were excellent swordsman/woman. Onwards they clashed. Midna slowly fell into a rhythmical trance; block high, block low, stab, duck, roll, swipe, block left, stab, duck, block right, swipe, stab...

But all good things must come to an end. Midna was a Princess after all, not a soldier. As she drew back, intending to impale her enemy, she did not foresee the stab directed at her. Her eyes widened in pain as Ghirahim's rapier slid past her skin, into her chest. Game over.

And yet somehow, she managed to say: "You lose, Ghirahim," before she collapsed, falling off the edge of the building and down to the ground.

* * *

><p>Link slashed through yet another of what seemed like thousands of opponents. Already, his arms tired from the onslaught. They were losing too much ground, but there was nothing to be done. They were out-numbered 10 to 1 and in many cases out-classed. Only his division seemed to be making any progress. As a short period of respite came between two waves of enemies, something caught his eye.<p>

High above the battlefield, on the roof of the noble palace of Twilight, his beloved Princess fought dearly with the evil leader. Link's eyes widened in fear as he searched frantically for any sign of Kyo's presence to reassure him that she had backup. Then _it_ happened.

Like a nightmare, an oh so familiar dream, the vision which he had dreaded for long materialized itself before him. The weapon, the rapier, transpierced her torso as she jerked convulsively. Then she fell. Down, off the roof, out of sight.

"NOOOOO!" he yelled, flying into a bloodied frenzy. Slashing blindly in front of him, he ran to where her body would have fallen. It was as though the world had frozen around him. He could nay see over the mass of battling sentient beings bent on ending the life, that force so precious, of they who opposed their point of view. A useless slaughter. Yet it no longer mattered. Nothing mattered, as the Hero of Time breached the perimeter of the fight and viewed his beloved lying eagle-spread on the ground.

Tears streaming down his cheeks, he flung himself to her side, grabbing her hand. "No, Midna. No. Don't leave me!" he urged as Zelda joined him, her clothes torn and dirt smudged on her face.

Midna's eyes fluttered open weakly. "Save your pity for someone who will need it, my friend." she muttered.

"Friend?" asked Zelda, "But... That... Then you're not her. You're..."

Before his friends eyes, Kyo returned to his normal self for the last time. "The Triforce of Bonds is very special. Not only does it bind me to my friends, but it binds me in death as well," he choked out, struggling to point up.

The hylians looked up atop the roof and saw none other than Ghirahim himself. However, they were surprised to see that he was contorted in pain; clutching at himself at he stumbled to and fro.

"My story here ends. We would both die whether I liked it or not, so I decided to save as many others as I could. People with families, wives, children, _futures_. I pass this on to you. It is my will, to be read _post mortem_. Goodbye," he finished, looking up into his friends faces, "Goodbye." His eyes then closed forevermore.

As the two onlookers gave a short prayer, they were disrupted by a sound of pure agony. High above the battle still raging around, the evil overlord was dissolving, his power slowly leaving him. As he weakened, so did his magic. The shadow beasts exploded one after the other in a seemingly endless chain.

"NO!" he shouted, "YOU CAN'T DEFEAT ME!" I AM IMMORTAAAAAAAAAL!"

A blast of dark light enveloped the scene, wiping out of existence Ghirahim and his army for all eternity. When vision returned, there was left only a few scattered Zantist Twili, the Royal Army, the two Hylians and the corpse of a noble soldier who gave his life for the good of those he cared about.

The faces all turned to the palace as the doors burst open presenting a grimacing Twilight Princess. "Where is that son of a bitch so I can give him a piece of- oh..." She stopped short on her rant noticing the mourning two. Then realized something was terribly wrong. Mentally asking forgiveness for her lack of faith, she rushed over to comfort the two others.

* * *

><p><em>My good friends,<em>

_Death is something even I could not escape perpetually. All I ask, is that you forget me. Though I never told you this, I was an abomination. No person alive should hold such power in a mortal world. I fulfilled the will of my Masters for they are my creators, not out of devotion, but out of respect for giving me life. I respected their wisdom, but the time I spent with you three has made me realize that they could never truly be in tune with you all for they have not spent time with you. They cannot understand emotion, love, sacrifice. Do no get me wrong, they are more wise than I could ever hope to be, but always judge your actions based on your own morality, for even gods can make errors._

_I have no material possessions, for I have lived a life in exile, but I can offer the richest wealth in the world: information. I studied for centuries until I knew everything. Simply hold this parchment, mentally ask your question and the answer will appear on the back._

_Ever your friend,_

_Kyo_

_-I cannot be defeated, for I am nothing. It is out of nothing that I came and it is into nothing that I shall go-_

The engaged couple looked to their friend. She nodded and took the parchment. Taking a deep breath, she thought: "_Did you love me?_" And turned over the will. Only one word was inscribed:

_Yes_

The End

**And thus ends the story. I will leave you to reflect upon whatever you feel like, and hope to see you next time when I upload the epilogue. And please, review your feeling on the ending. I want to know what you all think.**

**P.S. I don't know when the epilogue will be uploaded. Probably not next weekend.**


	13. Epilogue

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with the epilogue.  
>Well, two weeks have past and have fully recovered from vacation mode so I'm finally ending it off here. Yup, the <em>real<em> last chapter. I know I said there could be an epi-epilogue but I decided against it and instead just made one relativley long epilogue. I'd like to thank Dire Heart (yes it is, isn't it?), Robotfairy and LoZfanbman for their reviews as per usual and hope you enjoy!**

**Epilogue**

Both. They had decided it the very eve of the incident.

The three sat in the royal quarters, silent as the wind, mourning the loss of their friend. He had been brought inside and placed, carefully, on the marble deathbed in the building were his funeral would be held the following day. But not only would his funeral be conducted at that time. The royal marriage would happen simultaneously. No one opposed it, for the dead man had been their hero, their savior from the terrible oppression of another Zantist regime.

Holding Midna's hand, Link raised his head slightly and observed his other friend. She hadn't spoken since she read the answer to her question, and they had not pushed to learn it. Naturally, they were both worried, but she seemed to be accepting the fact as well as she could be expected to.

"We should get some sleep. Today's... Events have tired us all and we must be ready for tomorrow," pointed out the soon-to-be Twilight Queen.

"I concur," seconded the Hero. "He did what he did so that we _could_ sleep tonight. I suggest we take advantage of that."

Still silent, the light Princess nodded and left the room. Midna watched her leave sadly.

"I wonder... I wonder if he really did have to leave..." she sighed.

"You heard him; read his note. There's no way he could have survived the poison anyway..."

"I thought that too, for a while. But I realized: after the battle had been won, there would be no trouble in getting the herbs needed to heal him."

"The problem with that is that at the rate we were going, we _weren't_ going to win."

"Hmm..." she grunted in assent, "But the other thing that bothers me is... Well... Did he tell us the truth?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"He said he could only use his powers if he were attacked. He justified his humiliation of Ghirahim the first time on self-defense and even stated that he could stand in the middle of a battlefield and kill everyone who attacked him."

"Are you saying that he could have done the same thing on the roof? Let himself be attacked?"

She nodded, laying down. A moment of silence passed.

"I think that can be explained in his last words. He said that they were bonded by the spell he cast, the one we all thought had failed. If Kyo were the one to kill him, they would both have died anyway. Even if he weren't the one to kill him, he still would have bought the farm."

"Then why did he cast that spell in the first place, if it ensured his death?"

"Because it was a fail-safe. Even if no one managed to kill Ghirahim, even if all our defenses fell, our victory was assured. Both would died from the poison."

"I have a feeling Kyo would have enjoyed the irony of killing the enemy with its own weapon."

"I have a feeling you're right."

* * *

><p>Link took one last big breath as the music started. It was slow, dignified music. Music that could have been played at either a wedding or a funeral. "<em>Or both, as the case may be...<em>" thought Link. He didn't have much time left to think, however, as the doors opened and in walked the bride. His jaw dropped. She looked absolutely stunning in the royal wedding garb that had been passed down from generation to generation of rulers.

The music slowed to a halt as she arrived next to her future King, in front of the elder dressed in ceremonial clothing and next to pedestal upon which another hero rested. The elder smiled kindly at the two of them. He had been picked out amongst the others for he was one of the few had learned Hylian, the tongue in which the activities would occur. He cleared his throat, then began his speech.

"Ladies and gentlemen. We are gathered here today to mourn the death of a man who gave up everything to serve and protect our civilization. Who took arms against a sea of troubles and by opposing, ended them. And he is not alone. Far too many lost their lives in the great battle that took place only yesterday. Men and women with lives, families, futures. It is our responsibility to never forget the sacrifices made by others in order to keep our lives safe. But as surely as crops will re-grow, in all bad things come drops of good. Commerce continues, children learn and play and young couples find love. Yes, we are also here to celebrate love. From the dust and ashes of conflict comes the most precious gift of all. Soldiers of all ages gave their lives in exchange of ours and we must not forget that. And these two have obviously not. But tradition intervenes. I must ask you Sir Link, Hero of Light and Twilight: do you take Princess Midna to be your wedded wife, to protect her, to love her and to do your best to guide our grand Nation until death seeks you out?"

"I do," stated the Hero, serious and confident.

"And do you, Princess Midna, take Sir Link to be your wedded husband, to love him, care for him and guide him through the tedious task of ruling until death seeks you out?"

"I do," she also replied. None could tell whether the tear in her eye was of happiness or sadness.

"Then I pronounce you officially husband and wife, King and Queen of the Twilight Realm," finished the elder as a roar of applause rocked the building.

But all celebration must come to an end. As the applause died down, the elder and the King and Queen, followed by Princess Zelda, approached the pedestal on which Kyo's body lay. "Before us," began the master of ceremonies, "Lay the remains of Sir Kyo. A hero to us all, but loved dearly by his friends. Would anyone care to say a few words in honor of his memory?"

Link was the first to move. He moved even closer to his dead friend and looked into his peaceful face.

"Kyo... Was like no man I have ever encountered: brave, intelligent, strong and witty. He knew the task set before him by the Goddesses and accomplished it. At the cost of his life. I mistrusted him at the start. I had a feeling that he knew more than he let on. But as again and again he proved his faithfulness, he showed me than there is a step beyond trust. A step where relation is fact, where there is no doubt whatsoever, where the question of trust need not even be brought up. I don't think he ever told us the full truth, but I don't think it matters. What does matter is that we never forget the sacrifice he made in our honor. A sacrifice that could only be made out of the bonds of true friendship and loyalty," reflected the Hero. At his final words, a rumble of solemn clapping waved through the crowd.

All that had needed to be said had been said. As the royals stepped back, the elder pronounced a few magical incantations. Slowly, ever so slowly, the second Hero dissolved into golden flames which, in seconds, exploded into the orange air of the Twilight realm.

* * *

><p>Zelda sat on a hill a little ways away from party. The burial had given place to the party organized for the marriage of the royal couple and people were singing and dancing, eating and laughing as the end of the day drew near. After offering her congratulations to her friends, she left to sit where she now was.<p>

She thought back to the words that Link had spoken at the funeral. Back to the letter. Back to everything he had ever said. "_I can't believe he's gone..._" she thought sadly. He had written to forget him. To leave this page of history blank. They had done that by destroying his body, but they could never destroy the image in her heart.

And yet it had to go.

But she couldn't.

"You aren't enjoying the party, I take it..."

Surprised, for the voice sounded nothing like Link, she turned around to see who was speaking. It was... "Captain?" she asked, astounded. When had he learned to speak Hylian? The Twili smiled.

"I've been reading the few books we have written in Hylian so I could finally understand what you were saying to each other," he smiled. "I can see your surprised, too. What, did you think all military men were brainless grunts?"

"Of course not!" Zelda replied. "I just thought you would have told us beforehand!"

"That's what they all say..." he winked, "But that still doesn't answer my question. Why aren't you enjoying the party with everyone else?"

The light Princess opened her mouth to respond, but closed it again, gazing off into the distance. A moment of silence followed.

"He was a great man." stated the captain. "If my men were half as brave as he, there would never have been any issue at all. I fought alongside him during the first of Ghirahim's attempts and he battled fervently. He battled stronger than even he admitted, with the kind of spirit that can only be found when protecting something important. Now I'm not a soothsayer, but I can tell you had feelings for him, didn't you?"

She said nothing, but made no comment to disabuse him of that notion, so he carried on.

"Also, from your current reaction, I can tell he said something before he breathed his last breath."

Again, she did not protest.

"Whatever he said then you should keep to heart. He knew what he was doing long before it happened. I would venture a guess he knew what would happen before he even met you. He was a sincere man. He may have never said the whole truth, but he never lied."

As the Captain of the Guard finished, Zelda looked up at him. He was right, of course, but even if she should forget, could she? Then it hit her. Kyo had not meant forget entirely and wipe away all trace. He had meant accept. Accept and move on. Forget emotions than no longer served any purpose and live the life he had sacrificed his to protect.

She looked up again at the captain and nodded. "I know. Let's go back to the party. We wouldn't want to let the newly wed couple have _all _the fun."

* * *

><p>High atop the largest building, a man in a dark cloak looked down upon the celebration. His mission was complete. Orange eyes ever burning under a concealing hood he murmured: "I will return. Some day..." Turning his back on the world, he let darkness sweep him away.<p>

**And thus ends this story. I really don't have much to say here besides thank you once again for all the support and a big thanks the my beta-reader-ish guy who made the bet with me, for this was one heck of a fun project. If I ever think of a new story, I'll definitly write a sequal. So to everyone here: stay tuned. Joe Elf, signing out of Dark Destiny, for the last time.**

**Edit 29/05/12: My thanks to the people who reviewed the final part of the story: Robotfairy and Narkloth! *shudders at the udder awesomeness of the people*  
>Anyway, I have good news! The sequal to this story is already under production. The first chapters should go up sometime after my end-of-term exams! See you all then!<strong>


	14. There is only Power

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with book 2!  
>Well, with my exams finally over and high school completly finished, I can finally start working on this in earnest. Just as a warning, the plot I've set for the second part is a lot more complicated than the first. For that reason, I'm not sure how often I'll be able to upload since I'll probably end up re-writing a bunch of stuff. That, however, is not the point. I'll upload the continuation of Dark Destiny in the same story, so no need to go look for it if you want to "story alert" it. Speaking of which, I want to thank "Not awesomer than you" for his review! Simply reviewing <em>does<em> make you awesomer than me. Non-story related info aside, this is just a little prologue I put together as foreshadowing. Hopefully, you will be intrigued!**

**Disclaimer: I am 12 and what is copyright?**

**BOOK 2:  
><strong>**THERE IS ONLY POWER**

**Prologue:**

Three figures stood in a circle around a fourth.

"You should be proud. You have grown stronger."

"And one day I will defeat you."

"Think, to listen thou needest not speak. Reasons may go beyond comprehension. Trust in the future."

"I have no future."

"Speaketh not in defeat. Be true of heart and thy path shalt appear before thee."

"My path is leading away from you."

The man on the ground stood up, dried and fresh blood flowing from multiple wounds. "I have passed your challenge, now give me the answers you promised me! Why can I not return?

The three women shared glances. "We did not expect you to pass. We can not tell you as of yet," replied the first softly. A moment of silence passed in which only the slow dripping of blood could be heard.

"You call yourselves Goddesses?" yelled the man in outrage, "Yet you keep the world in the dark! You believe yourselves to be superior, but in fact a worm is more deserving of worship!"

"Watch you tongue, warrior. A man such as yourself is not made to comprehend the decisions of gods."

"Shut the fuck up."

The deities eyes widened. "We cannot favor someone who cannot see the truth. Be wary or we shall remove your immortality..."

"Then do it."

No one moved.

"Just as I thought: you're weak. From now on, _I_ control this place and _you_ will do _my_ bidding."

"This has gone too far. Farore, Din, he must be terminated," stated Nayru as she raised her left arm, followed by the Goddess of courage. A golden light enveloped the bleeding man as he was raised magically off his feet. "Din, you may deal the finishing blow."

A golden aura illuminated the sacred realm.

**... Suspense.**


	15. Chapter 1: TwentyFive Years Later

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 1.**  
><strong>So the first official chapter is finally up! Lots of new adventure, action and emotions to be manipulated at my will (mwahahaha)! I hope you all enjoy this newer adventure. Sorry if some of you don't like the concept of "X years later" but it really doesn't change much to the characters or the story besides... Well, you'll see! Thanks to Dire Heart, LoZfanbman and all those who alerted and favorited this story for their support! R&amp;R everyone!<strong>

**Disclaimer: Copyright is for n00bs.**

Chapter 1: _Twenty-five Years Later..._

"Aren't you ready yet?" Link sighed, laying down on the bed, his green uniform flashy in the twilight from the window of the royal chambers. "It always takes you forever to get ready on this day.

"That," replied Midna as she came out of the bathroom finally dressed, "Is because I, unlike you, care about my image and do not have a tunic that has been passed down for centuries and looks good no matter what. So, how does it look?"

That was an easy question to answer.

"Fabulous, as usual, my Queen," complemented the Hero, sitting up. "We should probably hurry; Zelda and the others will be here soon."

"Already? I was going to grab a bite to eat first..."

"Well if it hadn't taken you an hour and a half to change, you would have had time. Come on."

He barely had time to turn around before her hand smacked him on the back side of his head. "Rule number 873: _never_ exaggerate time in front of a lady."

"I wasn't exaggerating..." whined Link, rubbing the spot where he was hit.

_Smack_

"Rule number 1: Don't say what I don't want to hear."

"Yes dear..."

The King and Queen left their room and headed down the hall. Twenty-five years ago, Link had proposed to her after a battle that had claimed the lives of so many, including their good friend Kyo. Every year since, on this day, a celebration had been held to honor and remember the man who had once saved them all from the clutches of the evil Lord Ghirahim. Since then, a lot had changed. Trade and tourism between the Light and Twilight worlds had exploded using the mirror as gateway. The mirror that Kyo had helped fix twenty-five years ago as well. Link and Midna had gotten married on the day of his funeral and even Zelda was now Queen of Hyrule, calmly running things on her end. The captain of the guard, who had been in charge during the Dark Sword Crisis, was now a veteran and a member of the Twili High Council along with the noble Lady Ratnak, now an old woman and good friend of the monarchs and the second Twili to marry a Light-dweller: Lord Kantar. But that was not all that had changed...

"Hey Midna, do you know where Kits and Ami are?"

"Probably waiting by the mirror already to see Romal as soon as they arrive."

Link chuckled. "Those two... I wonder what they'll do to him this time."

"Well if you _see_ them doing something, intervene. _This_ time..."

"I think I rather not. It feels good to see someone else suffer this treatment now and then."

"You've got a big mouth, wolf-boy."

Perhaps the largest change in all twenty-five years was the arrival of three heirs. Midna gave birth to twin girls, Kitsune and Okami, nineteen years ago and Zelda gave birth to Romal two years later. Because they were two years older, the twins loved to consider their best friend as a younger brother and tease him endlessly. Even so, they cared for each other very much, that was abundantly obvious.

As they left the palace and looked over the town, Link took Midna's hand. "Happy anniversary. So sorry for your loss."

Midna smiled at the words that Zelda had spoken so long ago, reappearing suddenly in the party with the captain after leaving her isolation after _his _death. "Those two phrases should never be said together."

"I know."

"You really are toeing the line today, aren't you..." smirked Midna as they approached the arrival point of the mirror. "Be careful, it would be a shame if anything... _murderous_ happened, wouldn't it?"

"Ah... Hey, look! You were right. They are already here!" said Link, pointing to his two daughters who were sitting on a bench waiting. Distracted, the Queen looked away.

"Oh, you chose some nice clothes, you two," she said, looking over them.

"WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU WEARING!" yelled Link, jumping back a few feet as he got a good look at the situation. The Hero's reaction was one many would agree to be the proper reaction upon seeing his own children in such outfits. Even knowing and experiencing the Twilight Realm's warmer climate, he could not comprehend the decision behind wearing such a thing. In fact, he could not tell whether or not it was a cloak or a dress, hopefully the latter, since it was all they were wearing. It was fastened around the neck, but passed behind the shoulders only to close back for far too short a distance over their chests and hips, leaving their stomachs, shoulders and legs exposed.

"What are you talking about? They look great!" smiled Midna, ruffling her daughters orange hair that they had inherited from her. "Hey, how long did it take you to get ready?" she asked them.

"About five minutes," responded Kitsune as she observed herself in a small mirror.

"See? I can't have taken that much longer since we're all here now!" pointed out the Queen to her King.

"That's because they've been here for about two hours now."

_Smack_

"Rule number 873: _never_ exaggerate time in front of a lady." reminded Okami.

"Why does everyone keep hitting me?" he sighed.

_Smack_

This time it was Kitsune. "Rule number 14: do not complain about the actions of a lady."

"You're all so mean to me..."

Luckily for Link, the three women did not have time to hit him _again_ because at that moment, the portal emitted a strong glow and three people materialized out of nowhere.

"Link! Midna! How have you been?" smiled Zelda, moving forwards to embrace them tightly.

"Oh, we've been okay. After twenty-five years I'm still teaching this oaf the concept of respect, so we're always busy. How about you?" answered Midna while Link shook hands with the other King, a look of mock depression on his face.

"It's been okay. Trade agreements, immigration, tourism. A whole bunch of stuff is happening so we're pretty busy too. Not to mention that since his seventeenth birthday, Romal's been approached by so many women that I'm losing track of which families to curse," replied the newcomer, a smile on her face but poison in her voice.

"Oh, is that so?" smirked Link. "Hey Romal, I hear you're pretty popular with the ladies," he called out, looking around for his "nephew".

The latter did not seem like he was about to respond any time soon. He was on his knees and pale as a sheet while the twin tormentors circled him, giggling a laugh that would have stopped Ganondorf cold.

"Well, let's head down to the festivities then," offered Midna.

"Sure, let's go."

* * *

><p>"So then, Kits asks "Well what is that for?" and Link answers "Not something that I should know," and then he tells her!"<p>

Laughter filled the small table at which the four most influential people of both realms drank and spoke.

"You really told her? Link, you are one sly dog." chuckled Roy, King of the Light.

"I still don't know how _you_ ended up finding out..." sighed Link to his wife. "There was no one else in the room at the time."

"Professional secret," answered Zelda. "All wives have a way of finding out things their husbands do."

"It's not all that complicated, really. You were in the west wing of the palace at that time, right? And on the bottom floor. She simply heard you through the window. I'd say she was in the east wing in the first place to show a guest to his or her room and heard you on the way back."

The quartet looked up. "Was that you?" asked Link to Roy, who shook his head. "No."

"BOO!"

"GAAAAH!" screamed the Hero of "courage" as someone yelled in his ear. Everyone turned to stare at the one who had so cleverly deduced Midna's strategy. And everyone felt like their eyes were going to bleed.

The person that had spoken had green hair that was so messy it looked like he had just gotten out of bed. He was a hylian of standard height, with no distinguishable features besides his clothes: a shirt of neon pink, bright yellow pants that looked two sizes too large and untied turquoise shoes.

"Wh- who are you?" spluttered Zelda while Link rubbed his ear.

"The name's Htruof. I'm a professional jester!"

"For a jester, you don't seem to have much of a repertoire if all you do is scream in people's ears," grumbled the King.

"That hurts me deep in here!" sobbed the jester, changing emotions without a shift.

"Don't listen to him. He's just bitter because he just screamed like a little girl."

"I can live with that!" exclaimed Htruof, suddenly happy again. I hope you'll understand that my entertainment is not free, so no jokes will be made. If you wish to hire me, however, my current price is 20,000 rupees."

"Twenty thousand? There's no way anyone would pay that!" exclaimed Roy in shock.

"True enough. So I settle for a few free demonstrations now and then."

"Care to show us?" asked Midna, "It's the least you can do for lowering my husband's self esteem even more."

"I guess so..." he accepted, then grabbed the four empty wine glasses and the bottle from the table.

"First," he began, "To make sure there is the appropriate amount of wine in the bottle." Then he inspected the bottle a bit and, at the end of said inspection, poured perhaps the equivalent of a glass and a half of wine into his own mouth. "That should do it," he said to himself as onlookers stared in shock and amusement.

"Hey, that's an expensive bottle, you know," cried out Roy, slightly angry. Completely ignoring the outburst, the jester began balancing all four wine glasses on his head, left arm and teeth. Suspense mounted as he took the bottle, staring at every member of his audience in turn. Then he threw the bottle as hard as he could straight up, it's height attaining a dozen meters. When it reached it's highest point, Htruof pulled a dagger out of an inside pocket of his outrageous getup and flung it at the flying object.

Perfect aim.

The knife blew through the crystal bottle, shattering it into a million pieces and spilling the wine everywhere. Deftly, the jester flipped and twisted into seemingly impossible positions, and when he finally came to a stop, he stood bowing and smiling with four full glasses balanced on his arm; not one drop of wine had been spilled. As he return the drinks to the astounded monarchs, a rain of glass from the broken bottle pounded the ground.

"That's... Amazing," nodded Link, looking impressed. "I didn't know that what even possible!"

"Yes," added Midna, "It's almost as if you weren't hylian."

The performer grinned even more widely. "I knew you'd get it eventually!"

The seated four looked at each other. "Get what, exactly?" asked Roy for all of them.

"That I'm not hylian! That I'm not, in fact, even mortal," answered Htruof, shocking everyone.

"You're... Not?" questioned Zelda.

"I thought it would be obvious as soon as I said my name!" he replied as he climbed up on the table and did a handstand.

"What do you mean by that?" wondered Link.

"Are you really that dumb, wolf-boy?" the jester sighed as both Queens let out a little gasp. "H-T-R-U-O-F. Put that backwards and it spells F-O-U-R-T-H, or Fourth."

"Sorry, but that still doesn't ring a bell," said Roy, shaking his head.

"Of course it doesn't," said the jester, rolling his eyes and finally lowering himself to sit cross-legged on the table top, "Though you heard the stories, you never knew Kyo. Never spoke to him or discovered his past. Could that be because you were jealous of the fact Zelda loved him so much more than you?"

"Loved him more than me? Zelda, clear this man up for me, will you?" Roy spoke as he got up, outraged. His Queen's attention, however, along with those of Link and Midna, were riveted on "Fourth".

"Speaking of Kyo, have you seen him recently? I wanted to talk to him. He always gets away..." grumbled the man on the table. "If there's one thing I showed him that he mastered it was fancy escapes."

Zelda clenched her jaw whilst Link glared at the jester. "Kyo passed on a long time ago. If you know so much about him, you should know that."

"Are you so sure he bit it? He was pretty resilient last I checked."

"And when would that be?" asked Midna, holding in the violent indignity that threatened to overwhelm her.

"Twenty-six years ago. I've been pursuing him ever since I realized the fatal mistake I made when I trained him."

"Wait a second..." gasped Zelda, "When _you_ trained him? And before you said that _you _showed him. But that would make you..."

Fourth stood up once a again and bowed, removing an imaginary hat. "The fourth God of this world, master of Kyo and responsible for the fourth piece of the Triforce, at your service."

For a moment, nobody moved. Everyone, even Roy, who was not a member of their previous adventure, froze as they looked at the man posing as a God who, still standing on the table, struck a heroic pose.

"Get the hell out of here," growled Link through gritted teeth. "We don't take kindly to people tarnishing the memory of our friend with lies. If you're not gone in the next five seconds, you _are_ going to have 20,000 rupees. ON YOUR HEAD!"

Then the building next to them blew up.

* * *

><p>"What is your plan, Master?"<p>

"We will strike when they least expect it."

"When would that be?"

"During the holiday they hold to venerate me. They are at their weakest when their emotions are high."

"As usual, you are very clever, Master. What shall I tell the other two?"

"My two lovely slaves? They do not matter to me. I think they're doing a fantastic job of keeping this place clean. Just tell them to keep doing the housework."

"Shall I join them in this task, Master?"

"You, my dear, are far more useful. Intelligent. Beautiful. I could not tarnish such a person with such mundane tasks. You will continue your role as my personal assistant. Unless, of course, you which to consort with them? Perhaps plan a little rebellion?"

"N-never, Master. Please, do not doubt my loyalty!"

"You couldn't do it then and you won't be able to do it now or any other time, could you? You enjoy being my slave far too much."

"... Yes... Master..."

_Slam_

"Din may have turned against us, but the world will not! The population will never accept you as King!"

"Who let her in? Slave, escort her back to her duties."

"Yes Master. Leave now, or I will use force."

"You're lucky she's the one who sided with you, you know. Courage and wisdom, on their own, can not overcome strength."

"You're correct. But I am the one who bonds the three together. I control all of them. Now leave, before I punish you for your arrogance!"

_Slam_

"They _will_ accept me as their King, for when I return, as I promised, I will marry her. Together, we will rule the world as we wish! But first, I must destroy the bearers of the other Triforces. Then, I will rule and all places far and wide shall be bonded together. I will finally fulfill my purpose and leave this world in peace."

"Of course. You are very wise, Master."

"That is to be expected."

* * *

><p>It had been a quiet day for the new captain of the guard. Nothing ever happened on holidays anyway, probably because no one besides them was at the palace. That left them free to hold their yearly card tournament inside one of the guardhouses. This year, however, something different would happen. Everything had been going great for the captain, who had so far managed to work his way up to the semi-finals, when one of the losers who had returned to duty walked in.<p>

"Sir, I saw a strange figure in the courtyard."

"Did you say _in_ the courtyard?" he asked, taking care to hide his hand.

"Yes sir."

"Well, if he's already _in_, that means you _let_ him in. If you had no reason to stop him then, why the sudden suspicion?"

"Because I didn't let him in, sir, and I don't recognize him as one of the residents..."

The captain sighed heavily. He had been so close, too. But duty called. "Fine, where is he?" he asked, getting up and following the other guard out. The latter did not need to answer. The intruder had not even attempted to dissimulate himself, but was standing tall directly in front of the palace, staring at it. Grabbing a spear from his fellow soldier, he moved forwards to intercept.

"Excuse me, sir. This is restricted property. If you haven't been cleared by security you're not allowed to enter. Sir?" The man had not reacted in the slightest; not even shown any sign that he had heard. Either that, or he was purposely ignoring the captain. "Sir, please follow me. I will escort you out the gate." he finished, laying a hand on the intruder's shoulder.

Suddenly, the man spoke. He spoke in a raspy, low voice that sounded like a demon. "Where is Princess Zelda? I wish to meet with her."

The captain chuckled. "Princess? I think you mean _Queen_ Zelda. She's down at the festival with her husband and _our_ King and Queen."

As soon as he said it, he realized he probably shouldn't have. The man wheeled around faster than his eye could follow and grabbed his by the neck. "What did you say?" he asked, his voice dripping with murderous intent.

"I said," rasped the captain, trying to breath, "She's in town for the celebration."

"Queen? _Husband_? Don't _lie_ to me, mere mortal!" screamed the mysterious man, throwing the captain on the ground.

"Who... Are you?" gasped the vanquished, nursing what appeared to be a broken rib. He regretted not wearing any armor, now.

"_I_ am her husband, and _I_ will murder this poser." And with that, he walked away towards the gate to town. The other guard, seeing what happened to his superior, called for help and a dozen men, the others that had dropped out of the card game, came to his aid. Unfortunately, as the captain guessed, they did nothing to stop the monster, who waved his hand and swatted them all away like flies.

A new adventure had begun.

**Indeed it has! The next chapter will be uploaded on my birthday, so stay tuned to find out more!**


	16. Chapter 2: Revelations: Second Round

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 2.**  
><strong>I'm not going to say anything because I don't want to spoil anything. Just that there's going to be a plot twist! So many thanks to Anonymous and Dire Heart for their reviews (indeed, more is coming). Enjoy!<strong>

**Disclaimer: I didn't do any for a while, so it no longer matters...**

Chapter 2: _Revelations: Second Round_

The explosion of the building was most peculiar. Peculiar in the sense it did not react the way explosions normally did, which is a violent expansion in which energy is released as a shock wave. The difference was that instead of expanding as a wave, the entire force of the explosion was directed at the table, debris and all.

The four companions had only time enough to wince, witnessing the approach of bits of rock and glass before the shock wave crashed into them, temporarily stunning them. Temporarily being the amount of time it took them to realize they weren't dead. Picking themselves up off the ground, they stared in the direction of the blown up building.

There was nothing left but rubble. Luckily, it seemed that no one had been inside at the time. That meant the only one to be wounded was... The "God". He stood between the table and what was left of the house, arms outstretched and, even from behind, they could see bit of rock protruding all over his back, having penetrated his entire body.

"Even though he was a disrespectful jerk, he shouldn't have died like that..." sighed Roy, helping Zelda up. The light King's diagnostic, however, proved to be faulty almost immediately. It started with small twitches from Fourth, then more conclusive proof.

"OOOOOOOOW! MY BODY! So many pains are jogging through! Burns! It does, it does! Why does this always happen to me!" He screamed, doing some sort of dance-like writhing motion, hopping around and ripping small and large pieces of debris out of his skin, not minding for a second the deluge of blood pouring out of him.

Not sure which scene was _more_ stunning, the onlookers, not just the royalty, but all the passersby as well, stopped and stared as the insane looking jester. Finally calming down, Deus ex machina closed his eyes, enveloping himself in some healing magic then emerged, three seconds later, completely healed.

"You jerk!" he whined, "You tore a hole in my shirt! I'll never forgive you now!"

"... Who are you talking to?" asked Midna, coughing from the dust.

"Hmm?" Fourth looked over his shoulder. "You were here too? It's like a big family reunion!"

Finally convinced that this man was completely insane, Link spoke in slow, simple words: "Who. Were. You. Talking. To?" he repeated Midna's question, mimicking his speech.

"To Midna, of course. She spoke to me. Why are you talking like I'm some sort of idiot?"

*_facepalm_*

The royalty, unsure what to do, waited for a miracle to happen while the jester kept grumbling to himself. Suddenly, a voice sounded from the top of the building next to the one that had been destroyed.

"Stop acting like you're insane. If you truly are a god, you should act like one now and then."

That got the attention of the crowd. On top of aforementioned building stood a man, his entire body shrouded by a black cloak. The only thing left visible were a pair of fierce, orange eyes, glowing with malicious intent. He stood holding a chain which, upon further inspection, was being used to imprison none other than the royal heirs who, it was obvious by their scratched and dirty selves, had been dragged there on the ground against their will. There was no mistaking, this man had come ready to fight.

Fourth smiled grimly, no longer his cheerful self. "Insanity is a point of view. From my point of view, harming them," he said, motioning the heirs, "Would be insane."

"With you around, you're quite right," the man responded, "So I think I'll just hang on to them for a while." He smiled evilly.

"Not on my watch, kid," warned the jester, a sword appearing magically in his hand.

Link walked up next to him. "I still say you're both insane, but I won't tolerate you kidnapping our daughters," he stated as he unsheathed the sword his friend Kyo had offered him long ago.

"Nor our son," agreed Roy, also joining them.

The glowing orange eyes widened. "So, this is _your_ son, then? He will be the first to go." And with that, he took out a long, golden sword and pointed it to Romal's throat. Everyone froze. "This is going to hurt. _A_ _lot_," said the mysterious man, not a trace of pity in his voice.

"Oh, Goddesses please help me..." whimpered the target, cowering before death.

"It is true, Gods have the power to give life, to create. But look into their hearts and you will find that they also have the power to destroy. I am that power. I _am_ destruction. And I will destroy you," and he raised his sword.

A silver dagger sliced through the air, it's deadly path shredding through the fabric of the would-be killer's hood. Ripped to shreds, it fell off, revealing the face of the attacker. The face of a young boy, still perfectly composed.

"What?" exclaimed Roy, "You're just a child..."

"Did you expect something else?" he asked, looking down at the eccentric looking man that had revealed his identity. "Something like... THIS?" He called out, releasing the chain binding the heirs together and jumping off the roof. In mid-flight, he glowed a magical red aura and his features slowly distorted. When he landed he was no longer an innocent looking child, but a hate-filled fiend.

The monarchs had but a moment to glimpse a face they thought never again to see, before both Fourth and Kyo charged forth at each other and engaged in combat. And what a combat it was. Link and Roy looked on in astonishment as the two men clashed, sparks flying everywhere as their swords collided.

Roy gulped. "You're the Hero of Time, do something!"

"I can't even follow their movements, let alone overpower them..." he replied, sweat dripping down his brow. "Let them fight. In the meantime, we can free our kids."

"Right," the other answered, making his way to the door of the second building.

"Meet you at the top!" snickered Link, catching the clawshot Midna threw to him and launching himself to the three struggling people.

"Why does he get all the cool stuff?" grumbled Roy. "Can't you pass me the other one? There are two, right?"

Neither of the Queens responded, their attention fixed on the superhylian fight taking place in front of them.

Just as the Light King sighed and made to climb up manually, however, a small blast of magic shot out of the flurry of blades and smashed into the door. The small explosion that ensued collapsed the front of the building, blocking him off.

"Damn. How am I going to get up?" he wondered. "Forget that, how are _they_ going to get down?" Still slightly panicking, an abrupt halt in noise behind him made him spin around. A slightly demented voice screeched.

"I still can't best you without help... But I will return with some and you will rue the day you taught me to become powerful!"

"A much deeper, more sane voice followed, the urgency in it unmistakable: "**EVERYONE DOWN!**"

Propelled by the charisma of the second cry, the surrounding crowd flung themselves to the ground, covering their heads, monarchs included.

The second explosion proved far more grand than the last.

Though there was no building to explode and send shrapnel flying everywhere, the force of it was much stronger. Even grounded, the audience's heads were fuzzy for multiple minutes. When their heads had cleared, everyone looked up. Kyo was no longer there; only Fourth remained. Not the eccentric jester that had been there previously, but the true fourth god of the world. Yet, he was nothing special. Black pants and shirt, torn by the force of the explosion, black hair hanging limply in a standard cut and bland features showing no emotion. One hand in his pocket, he looked over his shoulder.

"So, do you believe me now?" he asked. Then, not waiting for a reply, he jumped easily to the roof top on which Link and the heirs were.

Easily snapping the chain with which they were snared, he asked whether they had been injured. In the end, besides some scratches from being dragged along, they were fine. Fourth easily lifted the four of them and jumped back down amidst the throng of staring citizens.

"Come," he said to the royals, "We must talk."

* * *

><p>Seven people and one god sat in the throne room of the Twilight palace. "So," prompted Link, "Talk to us."<p>

The god, seated at the head, leaned back in his chair, resting his feet on the table. "Really, there is not much to be said that you could not deduce yourself."

"Merely for the sake of our being so "inept" at deductions, you should clarify everything," suggested Midna.

"Touché." Fourth sighed. "Simply put: Kyo is not dead." Even though everyone present had seen him, saying those words brought forth a raffle of gasps. "In my opinion," he continued, "He has gone mad, though I'm not sure why..."

"Didn't you create him? You should be able to control him if you did..." pointed out the Hero of Time.

"Well... _Create_ is a strong word. True, if it weren't for me he wouldn't be alive, but it is not for such a reason that I can destroy his evolutionary chain."

"Evolutionary chain?" wondered Romal aloud.

"Indeed. A concept of one's self, one's sentience. Thought it is possible to control the mind and body, it is my responsibility as god _not_ to do so."

"That's still doesn't make any sense..." complained Okami.

"Nor did it really answer his question," pointed out Roy.

"Look at it this way,"explained Fourth, starting over, "Can you say you are the same person as you were five seconds ago?"

"Yes," replied everyone simultaneously. The god sighed.

"Well you aren't. The experiences and feelings you had during those five seconds redefined how you think. Though it is true that on such a small scale it is barely noticeable, consider this: think of all the embarrassing things you did as a child. Not on purpose, but simply because you didn't know better."

Silence filled the air as everyone reminisced. Romal quickly turned beet red, prompting the twins to giggle slyly and himself to quickly ask: "What about it?"

"Would you do those things now?"

"NO!" he replied immediately, turning even redder.

"The reason for that is that over time, you acquired knowledge, through your five senses and from your own deductions, that permitted you to understand that such actions, in accordance with your time's social standards, were considered embarrassing or wrong. Because of that, you changed. But that information was not gained instantaneously, nor was it already there. It was developed over time."

"Is that really necessarily true?" asked Kitsune. "If my mom told me doing something, like eating a certain kind of food, for example, was bad, I would believe her. Thus having immediately gained that information."

"True, but belief is born of trust. It took you many years, back when you were a baby, for you to listen to what your mother said. Now you understand that she's had a lot more experience than you do and that if she tells you something like that, there's a good reason for it. For that trust to manifest itself, it took years."

Link nodded. "I see what you mean. Our mind is constantly evolving, so we are always slightly different from before. From this talk, for example, we learned something new, which means that we can apply that knowledge, whether consciously or not, to other aspects of life. What I don't understand is that you can't stop Kyo from doing physical damage, at least until we have a chance to talk to him and calm him down."

"If I force him to do, or not do, certain actions, it is the same as controlling the evolution of his thoughts. It is through choices a person makes for him or herself that new experiences are analyzed and documented. If I make him choose what actions to do, it is the same as controlling how and what he will learn. The point of being a god, to me at least, is to create. If I were to interfere in the happenings of the world, I might as well have created a place where no one is sentient and that I get to control every person at once. 'Tis an old moral: if everyone were to be exactly the same, life would be dull, boring."

An epic silence followed his speech. "Wait a minute..." realized Midna. "What do you mean you don't want to interfere in worldly matters! You just did!"

"Details, details. If you really want an answer though: it's fun!"

Everyone stared. "Are you sure you're a god, and not just insane?" sighed Link.

"I can't answer a rhetorical question..."

"Umm... I have a question..." came a timid voice. Zelda was speaking for the first time since the incident.

"Shoot."

"How did Kyo survive?"

The mortals observed the Fourth, as he appeared to ponder the question. Another moment of suspenseful silence ensued until...

"I have no idea."

Everyone's jaws dropped.

"I have theories, of course, but none of them are conclusive."

"Well, which one is the most logical?" asked Link.

"Since he used the last-resort power I gave him, there should be no way for him to survive. That is how it was designed. Since Ghirahim is dead for sure, he should be as well. Therefore the only, even slightly plausible explanation is that his piece of the Triforce saved him."

"The Triforce of bonds?" inquired the Light Queen.

"He calls it bonds, the Goddesses call it control, I call it balance," he replied shrugging. "Three names for the same thing."

"So how would it have saved him?" asked Midna.

"Kyo probably mentioned that the reason the Dark Sword was created was as an evil counterpart to the Master Sword. The same logic applies here: with the death of an evil entity must come the death of a good entity."

"But he's not dead..." pointed out Romal. The heirs had heard stories about Kyo from their parents since their birth and though they didn't understand everything, they sought to.

"True, but nor is he good."

"So why is that theory questionable?" demanded Roy, also doing his best to follow the conversation. "I have a feeling that there must be something messed up about it if you say it's inconclusive."

"There are two problems with that theory. The first is: Kyo died before Ghirahim. He was killed, then dragged his enemy with him into death. That means that the good entity left before the evil one, which according to my theory would mean that Kyo died and Ghirahim survived as a good entity, which isn't true. The second is just that: he _died_. I cannot think of a reason for the Triforce to let him live only to become evil if it is just as effective to let them both die..."

"Cannot think of a reason?" exclaimed Okami, "Aren't you the one pulling the strings on the fourth Triforce?"

"Not in the slightest. I created it, that is true, but by no means do I control it's reaction. It would be the same thing as suggesting that Din is evil because she gave her Triforce to Ganondorf. We created the Triforce as a whole and gave each piece it's powers and limitations, but we do not choose how they are used or, except for me, who gets them. Even then, the only reason I got to choose Kyo to bear mine was because he was the first person to receive it."

"So back to square one..." mumbled Link.

"Pretty much. Any other questions?"

"Oh, I have one," said the Hero suddenly. "It's sort of inconsequential, but there was one thing Kyo said that has stuck to me for all this time. When he first revealed his face to us, he seemed to imply that he wasn't showing us his "true form". Is that the form you're in right now?"

"No. It's true, what you saw was not the way he was created, nor is it the body I now copy, for this is not _my_ true form either. Believe me, however, we have a perfectly good reason to not appear in our actual bodies. It hinders us enormously."

"How so?" wondered he who asked the question.

"If you knew, you would be trying to murder me, so you'll forgive me not giving you a demonstration."

Link looked suspiciously at Fourth, not sure how to respond to that.

"As long as it's question time, I have one too," interrupted Midna. "Kyo told us that you no longer resided here, not even in the sacred realm. But you said you've been searching for him for over twenty-six years, so what gives?"

"Also a very pertinent question, though very easily answered: he didn't know. It's true, I can no longer live in the sacred realm for reasons beyond my control, but because I am a god, he presumed I would never live amongst mere mortals. But in fact, I have been living in Hyrule for quite some time now. Our paths have even crossed before!" he added, smiling to Link, who blinked with surprise.

"Who were you?" he asked.

Fourth cleared his throat, then began to sing in a perfectly pitched, tenor voice:

"_Through rain and snow, through sleet and hail,  
><em>_I deliver to you the daily mail.  
><em>_You'll never live to see the day,  
><em>_When bokoblins will block my way."_

Link toppled of his chair. "You've got to be kidding me..." he moaned. Fourth's body shimmered slightly as it changed shape.

"YOU'RE THE POSTMAN!" yelled both Midna and Zelda, also falling off their chairs.

"Come to think of it," moaned Zelda, not even attempting to get up, "You did retire just a few days ago... But then why, when I gave you that letter to deliver to Link when he left to find the Dark Sword, did you not realized that Kyo was there and go after him?"

"I don't read the mail I delivered! That would be impolite and unprofessional. Besides, you really shouldn't complain. If I had known, I would have gone after Kyo and the Light and Twilight Realms would still be separated and would be raining sad faces," he reminded everyone, returning to his previous form."

"That's true, we're not complaining! Mom, Dad, do you really wish we didn't exist!" asked Kitsune and Okami, crying fake tears.

"_ANY_way," continued Fourth quickly, "Any other questions?"

"Yes," said Roy, leaning forward, "What do we do now? We have to stop him, somehow..."

"Well, what does a wannabe evil-overlord do first?"

"Take over the world, I guess..." suggested Romal.

"Exactly. So you should probably go and make sure the Light-realm hasn't been turned into some wild, cruel playground of his."

"We?" repeated Midna. "Does that mean..."

"The only reason I helped out today was because he planned on hurting those three," explained the god as he pointed out the heirs. "And their far too young to be separated from their parents."

"Hey..." grumbled the twins.

"Not in that sense. I meant you are not ready to die, nor are your parents ready to let you. The point is," he returned to the adults, "I will follow you, for I must speak with Kyo. But I can nay help you on your quest. I would also suggest that you send your heirs to a hideout. A summer home or second residence should do, but Kyo might attempt to use them as either bait or hostages. I don't know what he wants yet."

"Are you saying we can't help too?" asked Kitsune, disappointed.

"You'll be a great help if you can annoy Kyo by hiding from him. Emotions tend to lead to mistakes."

"How about the temple of time?" asked Link. "It's remote, in relatively good condition and, with skull kid's help, easy to get to. Not to mention there's a warp point nearby in case of emergency. Kits and Ami can warp themselves and Romal out if they are found."

"Excellent idea," approved Fourth, "We can also warp them supplies as they need them."

"Then we leave at dawn for Hyrule," smiled Roy.

* * *

><p>Zelda slipped quietly away from her room. As softly as she could, she made her way through the palace and out the front doors. The Twilight swirled around her as she spotted the one she was looking for. Quietly, she approached him. "I thought you might be here. You're just like him, or should I say he's just like you..."<p>

"Indeed, Zelda. Indeed. Have a seat," he offered, patting the ground beside him. She sat down, thinking about what she should say.

"Do I really need to tell you why I came?"

"Truthfully? Not at all. But in the problem lies often the answer, so speak."

"Kyo is alive..."

"Yes."

"He is evil...

"Yes."

"Fourth... Is... Is he irredeemable?"

The god sighed. Wordlessly, he got up, helped her to her feet and guided her back to the entrance of the palace. She followed, unsure of what would come.

"Princess Zelda... Love is a canvas furnished by nature, yet embroidered by the imagination..."

And with those words, he left her and returned to his meditation.

**YES! THE POSTMAN WAS GOD ALL ALONG! PLOT TWIST! Sorry for the wait on this chapter, I've been busy procrastinating... Don't forget to review!**


	17. Chapter 3: God Wars: Kyo Strikes Back

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 3.**  
><strong>Alright, I will admit right away that there are a HUGE number of Star Wars references in this chapter. Fear not, all of them are plot-relavent, but they're even more obvious than that Kung Fu Panda one a while back. Be warned. That aside, all my thanks to imnotraven16, Robotfairy (don't remind me) and alfred pierce (no wonder the mail always arrived on time :) ) for their very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very very fine reviews, and the same to those who favorited andor alerted this story! Also, please all tell me if I'm messing up the characters too much. For some reason I feel like they're a bit different than before. Or not surprised enough... Enjoy!**

Chapter 3: _God Wars: Kyo Strikes Back_

Yawning tiredly, Link walked into the breakfast hall of the palace. He wasn't half asleep for long, as an egg flew through the air, smacking him in the head and breaking. Stuttering as he wiped his face, he heard a very unconvincing "whoops" followed by snickers from everyone present. Looking up, yoke still dripping from his hair, he noticed both royal families and a chunk of the Twilight nobles staring at him and Htruof, the jester, with a mixture of amusement and nervousness. Obviously, some juggling act had "gone wrong" just when he walked in.

"I think hiring the jester was a really good investment, Dad," said Kitsune, trying not to laugh.

"I think I'll go take another shower," he grumbled, exiting.

The old captain of the guard handed the jester a blue rupee. "Totally worth it..."

* * *

><p>Cleaned off, fed and finished threatening Fourth, everyone was finally ready to depart. "Ok," said Roy, "Here's the plan: we go to Hyrule castle and make sure there isn't an evil overlord on the throne, then we drop the kids off at this "temple of time" place, then we fortify our armies together and try to convince Fourth to deal with Kyo for us. Sound good?"<p>

"To a certain extent. That is to the extent of assuming that your Kingdom hasn't already fallen..." pointed out Midna. "In that case, you're pretty much screwed."

"Don't say that! I haven't allowed incompetent soldiers since Zant crushed my guards in one foul sweep," said Zelda, seeming worried none-the-less.

"Yeah," snorted Okami, "But you don't have a god on your side."

Htruof, eccentrically dressed as ever, flicked a finger causing her to plummet to the ground, flat on her face. "Still on your side?"

Kitsune gasped dramatically. "Did you just trip a _girl_? How un-gentleman-like!"

The god smiled nastily. "You don't want to know what I've done to girls, Kits."

Roy looked at him, again contemplating his sanity. "You really seem determined to make everyone around you feel awkward..."

"I tend to have that effect, it is true," he affirmed.

"More to the point," interrupted Link, "We should get going instead of just standing around in front of the access point."

As much "fun" as everyone was having, they had to acknowledge the truth in what he said. "Alright," nodded Midna, beginning the activation. "But I look forward to see if you manage to outclass Kits and Ami in a "make-Romal-feel-awkward" contest. I already know I've won the "make-_Link_-feel-awkward" one.

"Challenge accepted," was the answer as Htruof walked through the portal.

* * *

><p>"It's still kinda weird to see the arbiter's grounds, a prison for generations in the past, become a relatively traveled port to the Twilight... I remember fighting that giant floating magical head-skull thing here."<p>

"You can reminisce about your near-death situations later. We need to hurry up and start moving if we want to get to the castle as quickly as possible," said Zelda.

"Just like old times, huh wolf-boy," sighed Midna, "It almost makes me want to use... _This_." She pulled out a small, orange and black rock fold her magical storage, making Link freeze.

"You... You wouldn't..." gasped Link, backing away. "Yet you would, wouldn't you..."

His wife smiled. "Yes. Yes I would." Before she could go on with her nefarious plan, however, Zelda grabbed her by the arm.

"Focus. We need to secure Hyrule."

"Speaking of which," Link seized the opportunity, "We won't be tricked this time. Fourth, you can warp us straight to castle town, right?"

The jester clapped his hand to his forehead. "That's right, I Totally forgot! See you there!" and with that, he disappeared with a slight crackling sound.

Zelda stared in dismay as their hope for quick, safe travel vanished before her eyes. "I guess we're walking," shrugged Romal, not bothered.

"Um, hello? Queen magic user capable of warping us all there herself? Anyone?" reminded Okami.

"Actually... No," said the Twilight Queen. "I could warp Link in wolf form only because he was connected with twilight magic. I would be able to warp him again in wolf form, along with you two, but Zelda, Roy and Romal would still have to walk..."

Link groaned. "You're the King and Queen here! Why aren't there a couple horses on standby for you?"

"There _will_ be in three days, when we said we would return. It's not like we knew some madman would try to take over the world. _Again_," explained the other King.

"That has seemed to happen a lot in my time as Hero. And instead of support from my friends and family, all I get is abuse..."

"Oh boy, cry me a river. Meanwhile, we'll get going. If we leave now we can get the lunchtime cannon back to Hyrule river. **(A/N: I'm talking about that expanse of water that's to the north of the town. The Hyrule field with the stream that seems to lead in the direction of the castle, but that you can't follow)** After that, it's not far," said Roy.

"I guess that's not too bad," agreed Link, "I haven't ridden a cannon in ages; I miss the exhilarating feel."

"Speak for yourself..." gulped the Light Queen, holding her stomach.

* * *

><p>One back-breaking jolt, blinding light, earsplitting scream and drenching splash later, everyone got out of the water, soaking wet. Not surprisingly, Fourth was laying under a tree a short ways away, completely oblivious to everyone else troubles. "Sure took you long enough," he commented.<p>

"Well we would have been here instantaneously if you had teleported us along with you! Let's jut go..." grumbled Roy, making his way forward.

It was quite a spectacle to see the King and Queen of both realms, their heirs and some random, weird-looking dude running fixedly through the streets. Not to mention they were all soaking wet besides the new guy... Passers-by stared at them as they rushed to the castle.

Arriving at their destination, and fully aware of how ridiculous they looked, Link quickly located the guard and approached him. "Has anyone gone into the castle today?"

Pretending there was nothing out of the ordinary about everyone present, the guard shook his head. "No one. The population knows that you were visiting the Twilight, so all audiences had been suspended. Speaking of which you're back early and with... "guests" I see," he said, looking curiously at Htruof. "Shall I alert the maids that rooms need to be prepared?"

Completely ignoring the question, the royals sighed in relief. "Looks like everything _is _going according to plan after all," said Midna.

"Yeah," added the Light King, "We won't end up in a fight against someone trained by a-"

Before he could finish his sentence, Romal elbowed him in the stomach, causing his to flinch in surprise. Not in pain, that was for sure. He could barely hold his sword. But why...?

"Dad," whispered his son, "I'm pretty sure there's a point in him _not_ walking around saying he's a god... Remember?"

Blinding flash of the obvious, of course... "I was going to say a, um... Guy who..."

Though Roy was stuttering, Romal sighing, Midna and Link looking from the guard to the local monarchs, everyone heard the low voice of the jester, calmly contemplating the fortress: "He's here. I can feel it..." Such a serious voice from such an odd-looking person made everyone freeze for a moment, mouths gaping.

Then the moment was gone. Kitsune laughed while Okami snickered "Didn't you hear? The man didn't let anyone through the doors."

Htruof looked at her, eyebrow raised.

"And of course that means absolutely nothing, doesn't it?" finished Kitsune, realizing their mistake.

"Quick! To the throne room," said Link, and everyone raced ahead leaving the guard to watch them rush through the entrance hall, dripping water and mud. Returning to his post, he mumbled:

"I really should be used to this by now..."

* * *

><p>Bursting into the throne room, Htruof trotting calmly behind them, though in front of the heirs, their worst fears were confirmed. Standing tall in the center was Kyo, uncloaked, weaponless, wearing only the simple dark clothes the old trio had once borrowed for a mission. "Ah! There you are. I've been waiting for you," he exclaimed cheerfully. The others looked at him suspiciously. He was acting much differently than last time. "I'll admit I'm a bit surprised my master isn't with you. Your children neither? They should really be here for this as well..."<p>

"But..." stuttered Midna, turning around to find that only the five of them were in the room.

* * *

><p>Behind he door, hidden from the inside of the room, Fourth was giving instructions to the heirs. "Stay low and hidden. If you see an opportunity, don't grab it, run away."<p>

"What are _you_ going to do?" asked Romal.

"Nothing."

"It doesn't seem like anything's happening yet anyway..." said Okami, trying to hear what was going on in the throne room.

"You'll see. Waiting is part of my strategy."

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Link put a hand on his sword. "Why are you acting like this. You're suppose to be dead, but you're not. Then you attacked us and almost killed us and our children... Explain."<p>

"Well that's precisely why I had hoped your heirs would be here: I wanted to apologize," he said to general surprise.

"Elaborate," ordered the Twilight Queen.

"Back when I was suppose to have died, I fought with all my willpower to stay in this world. I'm sorry to say I abused the bonds that _we_ had during our time together. You see, the balance in this land states that there will be good for every evil and vice-verse. Fortunately, since the reason he would die was because we were bonded, my Triforce also took into account the other bonds I had: you. Because you were good, there was more good than bad in the equation, so it could not destroy all of us, just the evil and the equal amount of good. Luckily for me, I had more good in me than he did evil, but only just. I was clinically dead, but for an ounce of spirit left over. Then, not knowing any better, you destroyed my body, further delaying the time it took for me to return. The reason I attacked you and your families upon return was that, and I'm embarrassed to admit it, I wasn't ready. It was... An indescribable experience and I went a bit insane for a moment. Why you? I don't know. Possibly I subconsciously recognized you and went for you. That is why I wish to say that from the bottom of my heart I am sorry."

When he finished his spiel, a moment of silence passed. A tear dripped down Zelda's cheek. "Kyo..." she whispered. Roy sighed. Everything had been a mistake, and now an old hero had come back to life. Already the political nightmare that awaited them swarmed around his head.

"Well then, Mr. Kyo, it's an honor to be able to meet you," he said, stretching out a hand.

"No!" yelled Link, "It's a trap!" The Light King's eyes widened in shock, then in pain, as a golden blade sliced through his wrist. Screaming as he clutched the stump of his arm, he staggered backwards. The sword was lifted high, then brought down swiftly to end his life.

_Clang!_

Link stood using both hands to hold his weapon in place as his enemy's crashed down upon him. Kyo stepped back, lowering his guard. "Idiot. Do you really think something _I_ created could harm me?" he sneered. With a snap of his fingers, it disappeared from the Hero's hand. "I'm more interested in how you knew it was a trap..."

"You were killed first," answered Link, standing defensively in front of the other King as the two Queens tried to calm him down and stop the bleeding.

Kyo chuckled. "You've been listening to my old master, I see. Not that it will help you. I have nothing against you, Link, but you must die. For him, it _was_ personal."

"Why are you doing this, Kyo!" yelled Zelda, "We were your friends!"

"Because I must fulfill my destiny! The purpose I was created for!" he screamed and again, he used the attack he had when fighting Fourth, an explosion all around him. Everyone was knocked to the ground, dust and rubble all over the place.

Wincing from the painful fall, the Hero attempted to clear his head. If for some reason Kyo was after him, he would need all the concentration he could muster. But again, when the smoke cleared, Kyo stood face to face with Fourth. No longer Htruof, but Fourth.

"Wrap the stump in cloth and apply steady pressure to it," he told the mortals, who immediately covered Roy's arm with his shirt and pressed.

"I thought you might be around here somewhere," commented the enemy. "I'm a bit surprised you didn't help this loser, though," he finished, pointing at Roy.

"I obey the same rules you do. I must not interfere."

"Some god _you_ are. But I'll finish by adding you to my collection."

Fourth's eyes widened. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

The other chuckled. "You should return to the sacred land now and then. You might find a lot has changed."

"Get to the point."

"I overcame the Goddesses."

Everyone, even the local King gasped. "Impossible," stated the god.

"Quite the contrary. If I can overcome them, I can and will overcome you."

"But why would you want to?"

"To complete the mission _you_ gave me, imbecile!"

"Gave you? The only thing I ever gave you was the Triforce."

"Precisely. Did you not once tell me it was what I made of it? You called it balance, they called it control but I called it bonds. I was right. I must join everyone together: one kingdom and one King. A sanctuary were those like my parents have nothing to fear."

"Parents?" whispered Zelda under her breath. The other two shook their heads; Kyo had never mentioned he had parents. He had claimed to have been created by the god.

"They will be proud of the world I will create!"

"But is Fourth _not_ your creator?" asked Link, a bit nervous to bring attention back to himself. Kyo slowly turned his head to observe the weaklings.

"I was abandoned at birth, for I was born from a union that was unmarried, considered criminal. Fourth rescued me from the river I was thrown in and promised to take care of me. He trained me and gave me the fourth Triforce, admitting to me that he was a god. I listened to him, but in reality all I ever wanted was to make my parents proud as they looked down from the heavens. That is why I don't care what Fourth wants; he is my enemy."

A moment of silence passed. Fourth bowed his head.

"You _are_ my son, Kyo."

"BUT YOU ARE NOT _MY_ PARENT!" he screamed. "LISTEN TO WHAT I SAY, FOR ONCE!"

"No, I _am_ your father," he stated simply. Kyo's mouth slammed shut. He looked at the man who raised him, a man that was now crying silently before him.

Time froze, the Fourth god stood, silently crying as he watched his son. Roy stopped grunting in pain. Link dropped his shield. Midna stared. The three heirs poked their heads out from behind the door. The dozen guards that finally arrived at the scene stopped in their tracks. And Zelda looked into her love's eyes. For a moment, it seemed that Kyo was shaking, that a tear of his own was forming...

Then time resumed.

"Then you're even worse of a man," stated the ruler of the Sacred Realm, "For you _did_ abandon me at birth. As well as abandon my mother. I promise to finish you off before this adventure comes to a close. It will be the end for you, _my Master_," he spat. And before anyone could stop him, he ran to the nearest window and jumped.

**It's a bit of a short-ish chapter, but I decided to leave it at that. Also, in case anyone was wondering, I was unsure how Kitsune and Okami could be in the Light Realm. I decided to pass it off as a side affect of having a light-dweller as their father. In any case, please review and tell me what you think!**


	18. Chapter 4: Insanity

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 4.**  
><strong>Well, it has certainly been a LONG time since my last post (it seems that way to me, at least). Things are finally going to get really messed up in this chapter. Like everything. Forever. Hope you're ready... I'd like to thank alfred pierce, Dire Heart, LoZfanbman and LightResurrection for their AWESOME reviews, and allow you to read on while I go wait in anticipation for The Last Story.<strong>

Chapter 4: _Insanity_

Link ran to the window and looked out. Behind him, the dozen guards converged on Fourth as Romal rushed to his father's side. There was no sign of Kyo at all. Doctors soon followed, rushing in and to Roy's side. Carefully, they began bandaging up his stump and attempting to stem the flow of blood. With his son and wife, along with Link, Midna and _their_ children in tow, he was quickly transported to more adequate medical facilities. In the meantime Fourth remained surrounded by guards and cuffed.

"You're gonna take a little ride to the cells, buddy," snarled the soldier in charge.

"If you say so," he sighed, drying his eyes, "But I think I would be more useful by your King's side..."

"No way we're letting you take his _other_ hand as well. Off to the dungeon with you!" yelled another one.

"I'm sorry, that just can't be allowed to happen," stated Fourth matter-of-factually. Showing no strain whatsoever, he snapped the steel handcuffs and began walking towards the window.

"Get him, lads!" ordered the one in charge and they all thrust their spears forward. Amazed, and now fearful, they watched as their weapons snapped attempting to pierce his skin. "Who the hell _are_ you!?"asked one guard, backing away in surprise.

"Me? Oh, I'm the new jester!" snickered Htruof. Then he let himself fall out the window.

* * *

><p>Everything was slightly blurry when Roy opened his eyes. The last thing he remembered before losing consciousness were the doctor desperately trying to stem the flow of blood from his arm and his family and friends telling him to hold on. That everything was going to be okay... Not. Closing his eyes again, he listened to them talk, pretending to still be asleep.<p>

"We'll send a message to Lady Ratnak at the same time. Then we can go after him," Link was saying.

"As long as you can convince Skull Kid to do as you ask, we should be okay. If possible, we should try and find Fourth at the same time. He probably knows the places Kyo might go in such a situation," agreed Midna.

Roy heard a sigh. "I doubt he would tell us anyways," said Kitsune. Obviously everyone was here. "If he had wanted to help, he would have stopped this from happening..."

"Not necessarily," came Link's voice. "I'm surprised I remember this, but he said "I obey the same rules you do". Perhaps he meant he also suffers "recoil" from magic he shouldn't use?"

"I'd rather not believe that. For one, he's a god. For two, I never truly understood those rules and they always confuse me," countered the Twilight Queen.

A grunt of agreement was grunted and a few chairs were shifted.

Slowly opening his eyes again, Roy groaned and tried to shift to an upright position. "Dad! You're okay!" exclaimed Romal happily, hugging his father.

"Let me breathe, son," he sighed. He was in a bed in the infirmary. All the others were crowded around him on wooden chairs brought for their convenience.

"The doctor said that you should be fine besides your hand. You might not want to move around too much..." explained Zelda, holding his other hand in her own.

"I imagine so..." he replied, wincing slightly as he looked down at the air that would normally have been displaced by his limb. "How did he manage to stop the bleeding?" he asked, lightly feeling the bandage to gauge the pain. Surprisingly, it was completely dry and white; not a dash of red. Link stood and walked over to him.

"Unfortunately," he said, seeming a bit worried about what his reaction would be, "They had to burn the wound off. They used a torch and hot pokers to cauterize your forearm. The pain, coupled with blood loss, is what made you black out."

"And how long _have_ I been out?" he wondered, feeling a bit sick.

"About a day. Long enough for a bit of a panic to start. We've told the population that everything was just fine, but a bunch of people saw you being rushed to the medical ward, so rumors are spreading..." the Hero admitted.

"But you shouldn't be worrying about that right now. Do you need anything? You haven't moved for a day..." interrupted Midna.

"I'm just a bit thirsty," conceded Roy. Zelda quickly got up.

"I'll go get you a glass of water," she whispered, tearful, then she rushed out of the room. Her husband watched her go. He knew he was lucky to have such a caring person for a wife.

"Moving right along, what happened to Fourth?" questioned the patient.

"Well," grumbled the other Queen, according to the guards, they attempted to bring him in for questioning, but their weapons did nothing and he escaped through the window... We haven't seen or heard from him since."

Link sat down, running a hand through his hair. "I really don't know what to expect from either of them anymore. It's like one of them could pop up at any mo-" he stopped abruptly, eyes widening. Over the curtain separating the royal's bed from the one next to it, a few tufts of green hair were visible. Again standing, the Hero angrily toppled the sheet revealing Htruof attempting to sneak past.

With the aura of a little boy caught stealing cookies, he turned to look at them. "Ah! Heheh... You're all here!" He was blabbering. "What a surprise! Have we met? Am I a goat? I like pumpkin pie for breakfast. One American dollar is worth 0.000624449 ounces of gold."

Something inside the standing King snapped. For the first time in his life, Link attacked out of anger, punching that damn jester straight in the face.

"SHUT UP!" He yelled, Htruof's body falling apart as he transformed back into Fourth. "DON'T YOU GET HOW FUCKING ANNOYING THAT IS? I'M NOT SURPRISED KYO TURNED OUT TH WAY HE DID, WITH _YOU_ AS A MASTER AND FATHER!" For a moment, anger flashed across the god's eyes. It was quickly replaced with an understanding kindness. Breathing heavily, the assaulter attempted to speak more rationally. "From the beginning, twenty-five years ago, we were lied to. And every time one of you says "oh and by the way, I lied", you just lie again! That or you say something that is the truth only if interpreted a certain way! You always do stuff, then claim you can't do it, then surprise, this is the _actual_ backstory, then not actually, then convince us to do this and that, then no one wins. Why can't you just tell us what the truth is? We're not idiots... Why are you here? What do you think is going to happen? Why is someone who used to be a close friend all of a sudden evil?" he finished the last sentence falling back into his chair.

Wiping a bloody, possibly (for a normal person) broken nose, creator of the fourth Triforce heaved himself to his feet. He looked around at all the faces, seeing the approval of the said words on each and every one. Nodding, he responded: "I understand. The truth, the beautiful, dangerous thing that it is, is what allows you to perceive. The truth is..." he began, the others leaning in closer. But to the hylians and hylightians **(Henceforth the name of the species obtained when you cross a Light-dweller and a Twilian)**, the sounds that followed sounded only like a jumble of mixed consonants, incomprehensible.

"What was that?" asked Okami, trying to make out words of some sort. Fourth repeated himself, again a mixed mass of phonetics that Midna was almost sure a mortal could never pronounce.

"And how is _that_ the truth?" demanded Link angrily.

"Because it simply is." answered the god, shrugging. "And allow me to explain myself before you go on another violent tangent." Link slowly unclasped his fists as he willed himself to give the man a chance.

"This had better be good..."

"I can't promise you'll like it, but the reason truth and lies engulf your life is because, and I mean no disrespect, you are simply pawns in a much larger game."

"And _that_ is suppose to satisfy us?" growled the Twilight King dangerously.

"No, but it _is_ the truth. The reason you'll never _understand_ the truth is that you don't know all the pieces of the puzzle: my past, his origins, even the specifics of the creation of the world. You have not had time beyond time to reflect, to ponder mysteries whose very essence are, at this time, incomprehensible to you. I am a god. The Goddesses are goddesses and Kyo is not much younger than myself. We never expected you to understand what was happening, we expect you to do what you want. If that means risk your life to try to save a friend that has gone mad, so be it. There is no way you could, at this point in your life, understand the logic of immortals." he finished.

Link clenched his jaw. "In other words, you do what you want, and we deal with the consequences..."

"Indeed."

A little surprised that he admitted it, but almost even more annoyed by that fact, the Hero turned away. "It all comes down to whether or not we trust that... Not even. No matter what we do, you're potentially pulling the strings. Whether we trust you or not, we can only hope that the decisions you make will be for the greater good."

"That pretty much sums it up."

No one said anything as the mortals gazed upon the face or their perpetual ruler. He seemed almost regretful of the situation. Almost.

"Then if there's nothing else you wish to help us with, you can be on your way," said Midna. Fourth smiled.

"Actually, there _are_ a few things I'd be willing to help you with. Two, in fact." Everyone present raised an eyebrow. "First of, I'll transport Romal, Kits and Ami to the Temple of Time and save some of yours."

"Really?" asked Roy, wide-eyed.

"Certainly. Do you need to pack?" he asked the heirs. They answered negatively, insisting that as long as they had food, water and some sort of roof they would be able to survive. "Then, we can leave immediately. But first, my second gift..."

Fourth walked up to the King of Hyrule. "This might come in _handy_ in the future," he said. Then his eyes started to glow red, exactly like Kyo's when he performed magic. Roy yelped in surprise as he held the stump of his hand. The bandages fell away, revealing a burnt, uneven stump. But the end of it seemed to bubble and expand!

In a fraction of a moment, a lump of flesh exploded out of the wounded one's arm, solidifying into a healthy, perfectly real hand. At the same time, there was a slight "crack" to be heard from the god's wrist as his own hand detached itself from his arm, falling limply to the ground. Everyone but Fourth yelled and backed away.

Ignoring the commotion around him, the jester calmly observed the wound he inflicted upon himself with mild interest. The flow of blood was already decreasing."Well, it looks like you'll be my right-hand man for a bit," he chuckled.

"What about your hand!? You just gave him yours!?" asked Okami, looking terrified.

"In a sense, yes," answered the god, picking his former hand up off the floor and tossing nonchalantly out the window, "But my metabolism is much different than yours. It will probably have grown back in a couple of hours." As he spoke, the wound stopped bleeding and began very slowly covering itself in skin.

"So are we going?" asked Romal. "I assume we're still leaving, since you gave us the opportunity fully knowing that you would be down a hand..."

"Yes, we are. Let's blow this joint," he nodded, eyes starting to glow again.

"Wait! I have one more question before you go!" said Midna, jumping up. "Why are you so keen to depart _now_?"

Fourth snickered. "Because I need to leave before _this_ happens..."

Just as he and the kids disappeared in a wisp of smoke, Link jumped on him, his attack falling through and punching the ground. His wife took a step back and Roy scrambled to his feet. "What are you doing?" he yelled. "You might be upset, but cool it, will you?"

"Shut up. He has to die."

Midna's eyes widened. "Link... Are you alright?" The Hero turned to face her. She stifled a gasp. Instead of his usually heart-warming blue eyes, she was looking into emerald green ones.

"Never better," he answered. "We're going to the Temple of Time to find that asshole. Then we can teach his son a lesson."

"Link, we just want to try and talk to Kyo and find out what's wrong. We shouldn't kill him if we can avoid it!" reminded Midna, the healed King nodding behind her.

"If you get in my way," growled the wolf-man, "I will _murder_ you. They must both die for the crimes they have committed against us!" Ignoring the stunned reaction from his wife and friend, the new Link reached for the door.

But the door opened before he touched it.

A soldier burst into the room in distress. "Sir! Terrible news, Sir!" he cried as he rushed to his King's side. "The Queen she, she... She's gone!"

"WHAT?" screamed Roy, grabbing on to the bed frame.

"Gone, Sir. She galloped right past the guards and refused to stop! We found this letter on the chest of the stable master," he finished, gasping for air and handing over a small parchment. Fingers trembling, Roy opened and read it:

_Roy,_

_I'm leaving. I'm sorry it turned out this way. What Fourth said is true: I love our enemy. I love him more than I ever loved you. It may seem harsh to tell you something like this, especially in a letter, but I have to go now. I will find Kyo and bring him back to the light or die trying. Without him, my life is not really worth living anyway. You can have the kingdom, I don't need to be Queen anymore, and I hope you rule it well. Say goodbye to Romal for me._

_Princess Zelda_

Roy stood in shock. He didn't even notice Midna snatch the letter out of his hands, nor did he notice her own gasp and passing on of the note to Link. What he did notice was a happy exclamation coming from the latter upon reading it.

"Excellent! She's doing her part. This will be over in no tim-MMFARGC" He was interrupted mid-sentence by the glorious meeting between his face and the other King's fist.

"SHUT THE HELL UP YOU BASTARD!" the other King was yelling as he hit him to the ground. But the Hero was not about to give up so easily. Grabbing hold of his assailant's shirt, he yanked him down with him so that that were both brawling on the floor, attempting to beat each other's faces into a pulp. To the rescue of his sovereign, the guard present attempted to remove the offending party from combat, only to get promptly kicked in the stomach. Quickly calling for more guards, an entire squad clambered into the tiny room and wrenched the Hero of Time away.

"Get them in a cell. And make sure it's a rotten one," ordered the King motioning to his two former friends.

"Yes, my lord!" answered the highest ranked soldier.

Midna gasped and protested as Link growled: "You will be terminated along with the rest of them, insolent fool! I will personally make sure you rot in hell for all eternity!"

"And _I_ will make sure you rot in _prison_ for all eternity! Get them out of here!"

* * *

><p>The god and the heirs reappeared in front of what would henceforth be their home. At least until Kyo had been dealt with. Fourth breathed the fresh air in deeply. "Ah. I always loved the country. So peaceful..."<p>

Romal snapped his jaw shut. Slowly he turned to his "chauffeur". "Look. I can understand that your weird and all. That you're a god and as such I should just accept whatever you do has an ulterior motive. But! I still would like to know why we're in front of a giant wooden mansion and not the Temple of Time..."

The person he spoke to smiled. "You shouldn't be complaining. My summer cottage has clean beds, a full pantry, and everything you could possibly want. Even a nifty little invention that allows you to store food for a long time by cooling it."

"This is AWESOME!" screamed the twins in delight. "Stop complaining! Let's check it out!" Then they ran on ahead through the front door, leaving the heir to the Hyrule throne alone with the fourth god of the world. For a second, neither said a thing. It was as though Fourth was waiting for something.

Breathing out a deep breath, Romal questioned the ultimate being. "Why are you being the way you are?"

The jester chuckled. "You'll have to be a bit more specific, I'm afraid..."

Brow furrowed, the younger one reformulated. "Every time you say "I don't know" or "It depends", you can't be serious..."

"Why so?"

"You're a god. Even if that doesn't mean that you can do absolutely anything effortlessly, you lie more than a little. For example, your hand is already back," he said looking at the re-grown hand. "You also know the everything, don't you? You're not actually the carefree jester Htruof you pose as. You know how Kyo survived, you know how he overcame the goddesses, you know why he did so _and_," he added, "You have a plan to stop him."

Fourth looked into his very soul for multiple full minutes. Finally, he nodded. "You're smart. Everything you just said is indeed true."

"So, will you share your plans with me?"

"That, my boy, was the plan from the very beginning..."

* * *

><p>Farore opened her eyes. "That went not quite as well as I had expected. Ah well. Considering their current predicament it's all going to be okay." She looked over at her fellow goddess. "You were pretty good too. To go through the trouble of creating a relatively plausible context..."<p>

Nayru smiled back at her. "Actually, I didn't do a thing. She did that completely by herself."

"Really? Interesting. The next step is operation power-fall."

"Everything will go just fine, as long as that damn poser doesn't mess anything up."

**Too late if you ask me... But of course you didn't, so whatever. Until next time!**


	19. Chapter 5: Be my Student, be my Master

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with (finally) chapter 5.  
>So it's been... 40 days... Sorry 'bout that... My computer broke completely down, and I needed to buy a new one. And to buy a new one, I needed a little more money than I had. Then there's shipping, etc. Anyway, I'm back to work now! Writing, writing writing (well, maybe not <em>that<em> much), so expect updates a little more often from now on! On to relevent matters, chapter five is a big plot point, so enjoy! After so long, I still want to thank alfred pierce, LoZfanbman, LightRessurection (did you know... Hmmm...), Robotfairy, Xero the pyr0 (stuff like that tends to happen when one tries to falcon-punch the other ;) ) and XPloyalist, as well as those who favorited and alerted the story. Again sorry for the long wait.**

Chapter 5: _Be my Student, be my Master_

Link flailed wildly and fell down as he suddenly went from standing in a warm, well-lit medical ward to a cold, damp dungeon. "What the hell!" he exclaimed.

"I'll say, what did you do _that_ for?! Provoking him like that just after Zelda left! What kind of insensitive idiot would do something like that?" snarled his wife, shaking an angry fist at the guards who hesitantly locked them up.

"Wait, what?"

"And there's that _creepy_ look in your eyes, how did you get them to turn green? That's not the point! What's wrong with you!?" she finished, heaving.

Link stared at her, bewildered. "What just happened?"

"Um hello? What have you been doing the past 10 minutes?"

"I was sitting with you and the others while Fourth was explaining some stuff, or not, then poof! I'm here!"

Her temper stabilizing, Midna realized something was amiss. At this point, there was no reason to play dumb or whatever. "Link, show me your eyes."

"Huh? What do you mean?" he asked questioningly. A pair of sparkling blue eyes locked onto his beloved's. Almost more worried now than before, the Twilight queen did not respond immediately.

* * *

><p>"So I must have been under some sort of spell... Is there such a thing?"<p>

She shook her head. "Not that powerful. Not even close. The best I know of allows the caster to understand the basic intent of others. As a peaceful people, the Twili never delved much into offensive magic. Especially knowing that's largely the reason we were banished in the first place."

"I don't blame you, it's just really... _scary_ to think someone was controlling my actions for that time. What if they do it again? Who knows what could happen?"

"We'll have to deal with that if and when it becomes an issue," frowned Midna. For now, we have to figure out where to go from here."

Link snickered. "It's funny how even though we were just discussing it, Roy forgot that you could teleport me all over the place." She nodded.

"It would be better to try and talk to him first. It wasn't exactly your fault. We might want to give him some time first though..."

While they considered their options, a small commotion was heard outside. "How long, your highness?" one guard was asking.

"As long as necessary," replied a familiar voice. Suddenly, the cell door opened and a soldier walked in. Not wasting his breath, he quickly cuffed the two inmates.

"Hey, what's that for? What's going on?" demanded the Hero.

"The King would like a word with you in private so we had to secure you." He sighed. "Hopefully you'll be able to sort everything out soon. I haven't seen him this angry since that foreign ambassador was hitting on Queen Zelda..."

The couple looked at each other for a second. "As long as no one interferes again," said Midna, "This big misunderstanding should end here and now." she finished, a dark look in Link's now-blue eyes.

Shrugging, the guard left and allowed in the King.

Closing and locking the door behind him, Roy crossed his arms and glared at his captives, an odd look on his face. "You have one minute to explain yourself or _bad_ things are going to happen.

Exhaling in relief, the pair relaxed. "To be honest, I was worried about whether or not you'd listen to us. We figured out what happened; tell him, Link."

"Right," continued the Hero, "What happened was this:" and he proceeded to kick the sovereign in the shin. _Hard_... Letting out a cry of pain, the Light King drove the bound Link to the ground.

"You'll pay for that!" he yelled, taking a small dagger out of a pocket. Gasping in terror, Midna activated her magic as fast as she dared. Link morphed in less than a second and both vanished just as the blade was about to be plunged into his heart.

* * *

><p>"Who are you!? What are you doing to my husband!?"<p>

They had materialized on the bridge of Eldin. Link, version two, stood tall (sort of) and haughty, his back to her. "Silence, miserable wench. You have no idea of the power working behind the scenes of this little escapade."

"I don't care about your little escapade. Leave me and my husband out of this! We have enough trouble on our hands at it is."

"Like I care?" he retorted, "There's nothing more to do right now anyway, but I'll be back for the next stage of our master plan."

The moment it finished its sentence, he crumpled to the ground.

* * *

><p>"So, let's start with your action plan; what are you going to do?"<p>

Romal and Fourth had moved their conversation inside, to the large dining hall of the mansion. The twins were, presumably, still frolicking about in a futile attempt to discover all the residence's secrets. Fourth chuckle.

"All in good time, all in good time."

"All right," conceded the other, "What about how Kyo survived?"

With a small smile, the god answered the same. "Patience. Eventually, all will be revealed."

Grinding his teeth, Romal rolled his eyes and tried again. "All right. Fine. Will you explain how he managed to force the three Golden Goddesses into submission?"

"I'm sure you'll find out eventually... Keep your question in mind, and ask me again when the time is right." he repeated.

"What I'm gathering," sighed the heir, "Is that by "Yes I'll explain things" you meant "No, forget it". Or maybe to you it's the same, since time never ends?"

Again, the jester laughed. "If I explained anything now, I would ruin your schedule. Your training schedule, that is."

"Training?"

"I want _you_ to beat Kyo in my place. I could never kill my own son, even considering the... _unique_ circumstances under which he was conceived. Therefore I beg of you: please be my student."

The thought not quite reaching the recipient, Romal didn't answer. He merely made an odd noise in his throat and stopped moving. Patient as always, Fourth leaned back and waited for it to sink in.

"Wait wait wait... You mean... train me? To be like him? Like Kyo? You want me to become the closest thing a mortal can be to a god?"

"I certainly hope you won't turn out like Kyo, but yes. You understand the general idea."

"That..." He was lost in his own mind. All powerful? Immortal (or almost)? Why him? After a moment of thought, he managed to choke out: "That can't work! I... I mean... It'll take too long. How much time can you say we have until the world is under our enemy's grasp? It took him millennia, to hear him tell it, to understand and control his power. How can I do the same in a matter of weeks? Maybe even _days_?"

"Really, you worry too much. Though you raise a valid point. It is possible that within too short a time Hyrule's rule will become unruly. But frankly, I believe that, at this point, is inevitable."

"You mean there's nothing you can do to stop it?"

"Probably, but I have no more of a death wish than you do. If I tried to delay him I would have my mad apprentice-son, the three Goddesses and probably and army of shadow beasts pursuing me."

"..."

"Don't get me wrong, I do not consider my life more valuable than that of the entire population of both realms, but we know that his only intentions are to become supreme ruler and violently and bloodily murder the other wielders of the Triforce, except Zelda. Therefore risking my life is an unnecessary risk and a very risky risk at that."

Still a bit vigilant, Romal had the nerve to ask for yet another explication. "About that point... What do you suppose he'll do when Zelda refuses to join him?"

Unexpectedly, the Master's response was not as abrupt and clean as his others. He sat up straight and look the youngster in the eye. "To directly answer your question, I'm truly not sure. Love is a powerful motive in every case I have ever studied. It is the fuel of every legend, every story, every life. What makes it even more mysterious is that we did not create it. We gods, I mean. It was born from human heart, and stays in human heart. A god cannot feel love, normally-"

"Isn't that bad? Doesn't that take a lot away from you in terms of sentient beings?"

"Well, you would have a point, if we were indeed sentient beings as you understand us to be. The truth is much more complicated. We are existences that interact in the form of entities. I cannot even fully explain it using only the dimensions that this plane of existence encompasses... It is still an excellent question. One I know the answer of solely because- Well, that's a story for another time. Suffice to say that plays a major role in this adventure, whether gods can love or not..."

Biting his lip a bit, Romal thought about it for a second. To try to imagine something so vast, so precise, so complicated as a being from other dimensions was a task impossible for him. Knowing what was bugging the listener, Fourth added: "If you're lucky, or unlucky depending on your point of view, you may get to experience the feeling of other-worldly existence. If Kyo decides to hole himself up in the sacred realm, we'll have to go find him there."

"I notice the use of the term "we'll"." The heir smiled grimly "In any case, please continue what you were saying..."

"Right. Since gods can not love, I don't know how he'll react were she to refuse. In my mind, there are four main scenarios that are plausible: One: the optimal solution of him falling back into reality, so to speak. Repenting. Two, stricken with grief, he may try and terminate himself. Three: He may decide that she's not worth it and kill her on the spot. And finally four: he could go insane."

"Wait," said Romal, interrupting again. "Isn't he already insane?"

"I would call it madness, not insanity, for he still is capable of making rational decisions. He can plan, talk, think, scheme. If he were to become insane, he wouldn't be able to form coherent thoughts. He would entirely lose control."

"Considering what we're going through, that would help us out too. No more second-guessing," remarked the boy.

"Don't be too sure. It would actually be the worst solution," said Fourth.

"What?" asked the other in surprise, "How can that be?"

"Our power. We are under constant strain to keep it under wraps. If our minds slip, all our strength will be released. A wave of energy so powerful it would destroy everything around us. For example, if I dropped my mental barriers right now, there would be no forest left in a matter of seconds. Half the people of castle town would probably faint when it hit them." He snickered at the look on the heir's face. "Don't worry, because of the nature of the barrier, you have to try _really_ hard to break it. And no, you don't have to "learn" to hold it up. It's something that simply starts to exist as you become more powerful. I just fear what an absent mind, such as that of an insane person, would have as effect on it's functionality."

"I see..." shuddered Romal. "I don't think that's a good idea after all."

"Well," started the god, seeming (unbelievably) hesitant, "None of those scenarios will happen, actually."

The other looked at him, a glint of panic starting to form in his heart. "What are you saying?"

"Your mother, Princess Zelda has... divorced the King and disowned you. She left a note stating she was going to find Kyo, bring him over to the light, and stay at his side. She still loves him."

The god watched as Romal's fist slowly clenched. It shook for a moment, warning of the fury within, then he snatched the first thing he could reach, which happened to be a glass plate, and threw if against the wall, smashing it to bits. Rambling incoherently, he proceeded to get up, force his way around the table and try to mangle, break and dislodge every bit of the room as possible until he was left, panting, in a pile of shattered glass, splint wood and bent cutlery. As he finally started to calm down, he was embarrassed at his outbreak.

"Is that what you want? An apprentice that can't control his emotions?"

Fourth, who was still sitting calmly at the head, raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand what your saying..."

Angry again, he responded "I won't be able to be impartial in the conflict, I'll tell you that straight away. Isn't that important for a god?"

Not bothered at all, the god answered "Not at all. I would have been more surprised, more worried, if you _hadn't_ shown some sort of emotion. Remember: I will not _turn you into a god_, I will merely teach you to harness our power. It is true that a god would not have had such a reaction, but keep in mind that our "society", so to speak, does not repose on the same moral foundation. Emotions are irrelevant to us, as I explained earlier. I stand by my offer: I wish to train you."

Romal didn't answer. Slowly, he located an intact chair, returned it to it's place, and sat down. The minutes crawled by, onlookers waiting impatiently for a response. Finally, he sighed. "If you think this is possible... You would know best, after all. I'll try." He laughed bitterly. "Or should I say I _will_? I can only do or not do, after all."

Fourth smiled widely. "True, but until it is determined whether or not you do, you try! Thank you. I am grateful that is your decision." He got up and stretched. "Now that we've dealt with that, we can move on to less pressing matters," he was saying as he walked towards the door to the kitchen, "Perhaps you two can help as well."

Just like in some traditional Hylian comedy, when he opened said door the two twins tumbled out and landed at his feet. "You need to learn manners," he commented as they scrambled to their feet.

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that," Okami said hastily.

"More importantly," continued Kitsune, "What shall _we_ do?"

Sneering slightly, the god told them: "You can stay out of our way. All you do is cause _him_ grief," he said indicating Romal over his shoulder, "I can't allow that, nor can I train such insolent fools." Mouths agape, the Twins stared at him with a look of hurt/disbelief. Romal watched on, surprised. His Master was rough, he knew that, but to act like that? Fourth sighed. "I guess if you _really_ want to help, you can clean up this mess. As a matter of fact, that's excellent. If this isn't back to it's original pristine cleanness, you won't eat. Got that?"

"WHAT!" they cried out. "That's not fair! Besides, you said there was food in the house! You can't _stop_ us from eating!"

"I said there were _means of preserving_ food, not actual food. I'm off to hunt right now. Oh, and one more thing," he answered drily, "Romal, your task is to watch them and _not_ help them. I will know if you do." And on that note, he left.

* * *

><p>As a person popped into existence, only meters away from their small camp, Link and Midna jumped to their feet.<p>

"You wanted to see me?" asked the man.

"H-How did you know?" demanded the Hero, clutching his beating heart in astonishment.

He sighed "Don't you get bored of asking the same thing? What about telling me why you called me here?"

"Right," said Link, recomposing himself. "As... naive, as it may seem, we can't accept the fact that Kyo's... _this_ different. We understand that we may be wrong and that we may need to kill him, but before we do so, we need to subdue him, talk to him, make him understand. Right now, there's no way we can do that. We need to be taught to be able to do that. Please, be our Master."

Anticipation mounted for the royal couple as Fourth contemplated them thoughtfully. Finally, he took a deep breath. "I will attempt to train you to the best of my ability. But it will be long, rough, and uncomfortable, so make good use or your last free moments, then travel to the top of Snowpeak. I will join you at my convenience."

Midna gasped in relief. "Thank you. If you-"

"You will refer to me as "Master" from this point onwards. That is one condition."

A little taken aback, she corrected herself. "I'm sorry. Thank you, Master. If... If you don't mind, may we ask you something?"

"You can always try," he answered slyly.

Link glanced at his wife for a moment, then returned his attention to the god. "What's wrong with me? Something is possessing me but we can't figure out _what_ or _who_..."

"If I told you _that_, I would ruin the surprise, wouldn't I? Consider it a mystery to be solved as part of your training."

"But what if it interferes with us?" asked Midna.

"Then learn to deal with it! I have an appointment elsewhere now, so if you'll excuse me..." And he disappeared without a trace.

* * *

><p>Roy's head whipped around as Fourth appeared before him. "I don't suppose I should be surprised you knew I wanted to talk to you, should I?"<p>

"Not in the slightest. What I _do_ need to know, is what you want?"

"It's about that damn fool. Kyo. He must be destroyed. Teach me to be powerful. Please be my Master!"

The god laughed appreciatively. "I like your fire. Let it be known to you before entering a contract with myself that my training is extremely... _taxing_... Be prepared to suffer by my hand."

The King prostrated himself in front of his deity. "Whatever you command, my Master."

"Excellent, _excellent_! We will begin tomorrow at the crack of dawn, be ready." And he disappeared again, leaving the mad monarch to chuckle sinisterly to himself.

* * *

><p>"It's in her room, correct?"<p>

"Indeed."

"Then it is ours for the taking."

"Let it be done when the usurper has left."

"He will fear us yet!"

A third woman overhears. She freezes, then hesitantly heads off in the direction of her Master.

**Hmmm... REVIEW NOW! Peace out.**


	20. Chapter 6: Back where it all Began

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 6.  
>Well, despite what I said last time, it's been a while, hasn't it... It seems I underestimated the power of college homework. But whatever, I'll still be writing this whenever I can, so expect updates (like you haven't seen that a million times before). Onwards: chapter six. I feel like I've seen this before somewhere... As always, many thanks to Narita, alfred pierce, Robotfairy, Dire Heart, LightResurrection and LoZfanbman for their awesome reviews and the awesome time it took to write those awesome reviews after reading this awesome story. Awesomely. I would also like to thank those who favorited andor followed this story; your support means a lot. Let us begin!**

Chapter 6: _Back where it all began_

Fourth stood in the entrance to the dinning room, looking at the three other residents who had all just stopped cleaning up and were looking at him worriedly. "Umm... what's for dinner?" asked Romal. His master sighed.

"Roast rabbit in a mushroom sauce. I hope they aren't poisonous..."

The maids relaxed visibly. "Thanks..." they grumbled, looking down while the god tossed his catch in the kitchen and rummaged around for a knife.

"Don't get me wrong," he warned sternly. "Romal, that was a completely legitimate part of your training. You failed the first task I gave you." The student sat down and watch in slight disgust as Fourth, having not found what he was looking for, began to tear the rabbits skin off with his bare hands. Confused, he asked him:

"I'm not sure I understand... How can helping people be considered a failure?"

"I'll explain over diner," was the answer. "In the meantime, why don't you three go outside to the back of the house. There's a small vegetable and spice garden there and I'll need some ingredients if I want to make this taste good." Any reason was good enough to get out of cleaning duty. Glancing at each other, the mortals quickly rushed out of the room.

* * *

><p><em>Princess<em>... It had a nice, nostalgic feeling to it. At first, she had regretted her choice, worrying about what would happen to Hyrule and, more importantly, to Romal. But she was over that now. She made her decision and she would stand by it. At the rate at which things were progressing, there was no time for her to question her moves. She had managed to evade all the guards and get to where she was now. She would not turn back.

Slowly, she entered the Hidden Village. She had never actually been there, but just as Link had long ago described, the were a bunch of crumbling wooden houses on either side of the main road. At the end, as expected, was the one house in relatively good shape: the home of the old woman who was the last of the ancient Dark Sword's protectors, though even she hadn't known it. Cursing the fact that she didn't think of changing into something a bit more suited to adventure upon departing her former home, she hurried quickly to the end of the street.

Taking a calming breath, she knocked on the one door that could be answered. There was a short pause, then the sound of someone feebly calling "Come in!" Carefully, she turned the knob and stepped inside.

Age had obviously caught up to the old woman. She was laying in her bed with some soup on her end table. It was probably all she could do now, eat and rest, thought Zelda. "Hello, dear," wheezed the elder, "And who might you be?"

The Princess curtsied politely. "I am Princess Zelda, it is a pleasure to meet you."

The old woman coughed a she gasped in surprise. "Oh! My lady, such an honor for you to visit me at my humble abode. Please excuse the mess! I can't get around as well as I could in the old days..."

As she said this, she attempted to get up, holding her back and propping herself up on the foot of the bed. "Please, rest! It is fine, really, you need not trouble yourself for me. Besides, I'm afraid I can't stay long..."

Slowly, the other lowered herself back down. "If time is of the essence, please tell me: what is wrong?"

The former ruler looked away before answering. "A dark scourge will soon fall over the land. A former hero has deserted us and sworn our demise."

"Oh dear," exclaimed the servant, "That sounds terrible!"

"But we have hope, for we believe that the power sought out by the Hero of Time in his last visit may help us defeat the enemy."

"That dashing young man in the green outfit? How has he been? He was ever so kind to me. Cleared up some nasty little bulblins for me the first time I met him..."

"He's..." She hesitated. "Doing great, but his help was needed elsewhere, so I came in his stead."

"Yes, yes, of course. I imagine he's doing everything he can to help Hyrule, fine young lad that he is. Now lets see... last time he visited me, he was asking about some ancient legend about a cursed sword or something..."

"Yes, that's the one," encouraged the Princess, "What happened?"

"Well, as I told him, we have nothing but rumors. I told him of the alcove that nobody had managed to reach he rushed off." She chuckled quietly. "By the happy yelling, I assume he found what he was looking for. Perhaps legends are not all fairy tales after all."

"Excellent, that's exactly it. Could you point me in the right direction?"

"Certainly. It's a little ways up the hill, when the rock becomes a flat cliff..."

* * *

><p>"As they probably would say had Hylians evolved differently and thus had a completely different language: bon appetit!"<p>

Not even bothering to answer, the three other residents of the mansion dug in to their meal. And _what a meal_! Two roast rabbits, cooked to perfection, upon which was dribbled a mouth-watering brown mushroom sauce and a side dish of home-grown vegetables; carrots, leeks and potatoes.

"Dif ish delifous!" exclaimed Romal through a mouthful of food.

"Yes, yes. How about you _swallow_ next time," suggested the god, who was lazily picking at his own meal.

"If you won't eat yours, can I have it?" asked Okami hopefully.

"No. Shut up and stop talking to me," he answered.

That sort of froze the atmosphere. Everyone but Fourth stopped eating and glanced at each other. Completely oblivious, the speaker took a bite of meat.

"Sooo... anyway," began the student in an attempt to divert attention from the previous statement, "You said you would explain why I failed your test..."

"Ah yes, indeed!" the other exclaimed, seeming glad for a reason to lay down his fork. "Now then, the first step of understanding is knowing, so explain again what you did."

"Well," thought the heir, frowning, "You told me not to help Okami and Kitsune clean up the mess that I myself made. I found that a bit unfair, so I decided to help them, like any good citizen would. The role of those with power is to help those without it, no?"

Fourth nodded wisely. "Absolutely! In fact, had I not explicitly told you not to help them, I would have been the height of rude _not_ to help them. However, since we're having this conversation, you obviously did not understand the reason that I gave you the task I did. Tell me, what do you think, and be honest here, were my intentions?"

"Well," the apprentice scratched his head, "To be honest, I thought you were just being mean to them..."

"And that, my friend, is the _true_ reason you failed," stated the god. "You see, there was a way for you to have passed that test while still helping out your friends. But the answer you just gave me means that you didn't."

"I'm... not sure I understand..."

"It's simple. Well, for me it is, probably not for you... You see, this was an exercise. A practice of something you might need to do some day as you wield the power of the gods."

"Which is?"

"Let me put it this way: in battle, what positions are there?"

"Well... attack and defense, I guess..."

"Wrong! You're missing one. Can you guess which?"

Romal closed his eyes and thought for a good thirty seconds before shaking his head in defeat. "Nope. All other strategies will come down to one of the two in the end..."

"Well, there _is_ a third. It's true: you can attack and you can defend, but you can also do _nothing_."

"_Nothing_? How is that a good idea? It seems pretty stupid from where I'm standing..."

"True, in most cases it serves absolutely no purpose but to be killed, and true, in a one-on-one fight to the death, it's not a very smart move, but there are times when waiting is not only ideal, but downright necessary."

A moment of silence passed as the learner digested this new point of view. Suddenly, he looked up. "Waiting is part of my strategy! You said that when dad got his hand lopped off! Is that what you meant?"

The jester smiled, looking very pleased. "Excellent! Yes, that's exactly what I meant!"

"Well then I'm afraid you'll have to explain everything all over again, because I think I'm missing something."

Fourth raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

"Yeah. How can the King's hand getting cut off be the optimal solution. If you had intervened earlier, no one would have been injured."

"Well, the answer is twofold. Firstly, it was essential that everyone see that Kyo would _not_ turn back and that it was _not_ some weird misunderstanding. If the same thing that happened at that point had happened at a later, more crucial point, even worse things could have come out of it. It was better this way especially considering I knew full well that healing his hand would be a piece of cake."

"And secondly?"

"Secondly, the result would have most likely been worse if I _had_ intervened before."

"What? That doesn't make any sense!"

"That's because you do not yet understand mine and Kyo's power as we do. If I had attempted to stop him before, here's what would have happened: I would have charged forward, weapon drawn and he, realizing that he wouldn't be able to fake _me_ out, would have made the most of the situation and tried to killed the person closest to him. I simply couldn't risk a life against a hand. Possibly even two lives before I would have been able to stop him. Then, he would have simply vanished. Returned to the sacred realm like he did in the end anyways. The way _I_ did it, we were facing each other and we both knew it would have been a stalemate. It was pointless to attack the other directly. That means that it is no longer a battle of steel, but a battle of words, which is exactly what it turned out to be."

"I think I understand..." nodded Romal. "You minimize battle time and you minimize the possibility of casualties. But..." He looked at his Master hesitantly.

"Don't think it's an easy gamble to make. Which brings us back to the moral of your task: there will be times when even thought you _want_ to help out immediately and save someone or many people from much pain and suffering, you simply have to watch them get injured, beaten, enslaved under your watch so as to ensure their the long-term benefits."

"I understand." He smiled. "From now on, what you say goes. You're the god, after all. You're always right."

Said god gave a weak smile. As his student began once again digging into his food, he murmured under his breath: "Yes, well, that lesson will come eventually as well..."

"I've got a question for you too," said Kitsune, reaching for seconds. "Why did you make such an awesome meal if you weren't going to eat it?" It was indeed true. While everyone else was finishing up, he had barely started his.

"To be honest," he sighed, earlier animosity forgotten, "I really hate mushrooms."

"Then again, why make it?" repeated Okami.

"Because you three like it. I don't actually need to eat, so it's more a question of politeness that I'm here."

"Well that was very nice of you!" she said.

"Don't flatter yourself, it wasn't for you, but for him. You're both as useless as ever..." He stretched, getting up. "I'll be off. Be up early tomorrow, Romal. We start training you at 6:00 am so be ready."

"All right," the Hylian answered, looking a bit uncomfortable at the way his Master was treating the others. Completely ignoring everyone else, Fourth simply walked out of the room and left.

* * *

><p>"Thank you very much, miss. I promise that once this is all over I'll arrange that you will be able to receive aid in your old age."<p>

"Oh, it's really my pleasure, dear. You just help the people!" smiled the old hermit.

Leaving the house, Zelda rushed up the mountain side as fast as she could. If there was the slightest clue as to how to get to Kyo in the temple that he had once created, then she had to go there.

She quickly found the opening that had been mentioned, but that was the easy part. Now she had to get up onto the ledge; a challenge that had evaded generations of eager hidden villagers. She, unlike Link, couldn't simply clawshot up to it. However, she hadn't gone there without a plan. "The difference," she thought, "Between me and all those other people is that I don't mind... _modifying_ the scenery to fit my needs." She had been practicing a little destruction magic in case she ever needed to defend herself, but was not very good at it. Taking a deep breath, she focused and let out a small beam of light. It flew up at the ledge and impacted on the rock.

It had less of an effect than she had hopped. About half a cubic foot of rock shattered and fell down. Nowhere _near_ enough to make somewhat of a path up. "Oh well..." She supposed she would just have to repeat the process perhaps a dozen times in order to collapse the ledge. Unfortunately, using the magic was really tiring. "That doesn't matter!" she told herself, "I'll just have to suffer through it."

And so, she began repeating the same process over and over.

Eventually, the lack of structural support reached the breaking point. The entire section of rock crumbled down. Gasping and panting from the effort, the Princess admired her handiwork. It was certainly not a luxurious marble staircase, but at least a climbable pile of rocks leading up to a circular door. "No time for resting. I'm almost there!" she told herself. Slowly, she picked her way over the rubble to the entrance of the hidden temple of illusions.

Still recovering from her intensive magical usage, she struggle for a moment with the door until it finally gave way and she stepped into the first room. It was much like Link had described it. A large, mostly empty room with a statue in the middle. The only difference was that there was no sword. Just a large rock with words on it. Cautiously, she approached the stone.

"Beware stranger, for by entering this sacred temple you have sealed your fate. No man may leave until they have passed the three challenges designed and created by the Hero of old. They are made to test your courage, wisdom and heart but be warned, for these task are not for the fainthearted. However if you truly manage to pass these trials, you shall be rewarded with the artifact placed within the last room, the Dark Sword. Good luck and goodbye."

Naturally, there was no Dark Sword to receive, but she didn't care about that. She hoped to find out a bit more about Kyo and, if possible, any clues as to his location.

The door slammed shut behind her, as expected, and a mass of black mist converged in front of her. Within seconds, she was looking at a perfect copy of herself, but a lot more evil. As expected.

"This day you will die, unfaithful one!" said her twin in a shrill, piercing voice.

"I will not, for I know the secret to defeating you."

"Oh really?" asked dark Zelda, circling her opponent, "And what would that be?"

"To let myself be struck down. To accept that I cannot beat you. To let the goddesses decide whether I live or die," she repeated what Link had told her once.

"Oh, and do you really think simply _knowing_ that is enough? Do you think that piggybacking on someone else's wisdom will protect you. You're a fool," sneered the shadow, and she pounced, driving a blade into her heart.

Or she would have if the blade had existed.

Just like Link had said, she still stood while her enemy vanished. "No," she spoke to thin air, "I will survive because I must. I couldn't defeat you, and I knew that, but I trusted fate to allow me to live on."

Not dwindling around, she hurriedly moved on to the next challenge through the door that had appeared on the far side. Walking to the center of the next room, she read her second task.

"Congratulations on completing the first task. Your courage is pure for even in the face of certain defeat, you did not give up hope. Remember this, courage is not only taking up arms to face a dangerous enemy, but also confidence and being ready to accept what fate the goddesses have chosen for you. As you may have guessed, the second task will test your wisdom. To proceed, answer this riddle: what goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening? You have five minutes..."

As spikes began lowering themselves from the ceiling, the Princess regarded the riddle curiously. It was not the same as the one Link had solved. Why? That stumped Zelda more than the riddle itself, then it struck her: everyone who entered was killed until someone passed all three tests. This was a fail-safe that prevented someone leaving the answer behind.

Then she realized she should probably answer the question before _she_ was killed. Luckily for her, she had seen this riddle, and it's solution, in a script back when she was studying up on ways too help Link get back to the Twilight. She remembered because she had thought it might be a clue, only to discover that it had absolutely nothing to do with anything.

"Hylians," she answered confidently. To her dismay, that changed nothing. Taken aback, she watched the spikes approach. "How can that be?" she thought to herself, "I must be missing something. The other races, perhaps?" No. Gorons rolled around and the Zora swam, so neither used canes or crawled... Oh, wait. Of course!

"And twili."

_That_ certainly changed things. The spikes faded into nothing and the path onward appeared. Pleased with her progress, she moved onward. She stopped short before entering the next room though. This was the one challenge she had no advantage over. She thought back to the tale Link had told them all a few months after Ghirahim's defeat.

"_And the third task?"_

"_The third... was much different. There was no physical danger to my body in the sense I couldn't have died. Instead, I could only have lost my mind and lived the rest of my short life in misery and despair; trapped in a vision that feigned imprisonment. That's all I can say, really."_

That left a bit of a mystery open. What exactly would happen? A vision of some sort? What was the challenge? Something to overcome in your mind? A battle of willpower, perhaps? If that was the case, she couldn't lose. "Nothing is stronger than my will to find Kyo," she told herself through clenched teeth, and she opened the door to the next room and stepped inside, approached the center and read the epitaph.

"Congratulations on beating the second task. Remember, wisdom is achievable by all. The true challenge lies in it's use in the face of fire or, as in this case, certain death. You have but one task left to complete. The test of the heart. I suggest you find solace in the now and present, for when I created this task, I made it in such a way as to break my enemy's will. Only those pure of heart can survive this challenge. Let us begin..."

And before Zelda could do so much blink, darkness consumed her.

The world swiveled around her, making her dizzy. Finally, it stabilized and she found herself in exactly the same place as before. The sole difference was that she was no longer alone.

On one side, her lover, Kyo, faced her son, Romal, weapons clashing. On the other, Fourth crossed weapons with none other than her former husband and the Hero of Time. Her heart began beating hard as she spotted Midna on the floor, her hair redder than usual as blood trickled down the side of her head. A blue-haired woman stood over her. She rose, hands stained crimson, and advanced on Zelda herself.

"What? No! This can't be right!" she yelled in surprise and the woman jumped into her, becoming a specter as their bodies collided. The Princess cried out in pain, as she felt herself seize up and stretch out.

Her surprise became terror as she called for help and saw Fourth cut both his opponents down. On the other side, her son stabbed straight through Kyo's defenses, impaling him on the end of his sword. He then turned on the jester; cleansing their blades of the corpses of their fallen foes, it was their turn to duke it out, the bodies of dear friends cluttering the floor.

"NO!" Zelda screeched through the pain, "IT CAN'T BE! MAKE IT STOP!"

But it wouldn't. And it got worse. As the two went at it, more people added to the mess, appearing only to be cut down by one or the other: Kitsune, Okami, Ratnak, Kantar, the old captain of the guard, too many to count.

"I DON'T WANT THIS! LEAVE ME ALONE!" she screamed again. But a voice in her mind snickered.

"Stop? Never. You will have the _pleasure _of watching your future forever!"

She wanted to collapse, wanted to close her eyes and block her ears but she couldn't. Some magical force was preventing her from moving. Then it started all over again. Exactly the same every time. Eventually, time ground to a halt.

* * *

><p>Fourth easily leaped up to the entrance of the temple his former apprentice had constructed. "Figures, on a mountain. Ever since that little incident he wanted to make a temple in a mountain..." he sighed. Effortlessly rolling the door open, he stepped into the first chamber. Quickly reading the epitaph, looked up to find himself face to face with himself.<p>

"So," asked his shadow, "How do _you_ plan on doing it? Accepting the fate the goddesses have in store for you? After all, if you do you _still_ won't advance..."

"It's simple," replied the god, "I don't need to accept because you can't defeat me."

"Oh really? And what makes you say that?"

"This," replied Fourth, raising a hand and letting out a blast of energy. His opponent simply melted away into nothing. Continuing nonchalantly into the next room, he read his riddle.

"Let's see... Which came first, the cucco or the egg?" he mumbled to himself as the spikes appear and began bearing down upon him. "The answer's quite simple, really: neither. First came the goddesses. They designed the cucco, then designed their reproductive traits, then created them. It's a trick question. If you mean which came first physically speaking, I can tell you, as someone who was there at the time, that one male and one female cucco were the first to appear by magic. The magic of the goddesses.

The spikes stuttered for a second, seemingly analyzing the response. Then kept going.

"Ah, what do you know anyway?" The jester rolled his eyes and proceeded to blow up the ceiling with his mind. Moving on to the next door, which was still locked, he just kicked it open.

And stepped into someone else's nightmare. He saw himself fighting his student in the middle of the same room as the two others he had just been in. The bodies of all his and Kyo's friends were laying motionless on the floor. In the corner, Zelda was crying quietly as she watched the scene. She gave a start as another god entered. An exact copy of the one currently fighting her son. He made his way carefully around the feuding two to get to her side.

"I had a feeling you might get stuck here," he smiled kindly.

"What's happening. Everyone's dead! You're fighting him. He killed... And... And..." she sobbed uncontrollably.

"Calm down," he soothed. "It's just an illusion. Nothing more. This isn't real. Watch." He clenched his fist in the direction of the room and everything shattered as though it was glass. The pair found themselves back in the first room, the door leading out was left open and daylight streamed in.

Zelda scrambled to her feet. That barely lasted a few seconds before she fell to her knees again. "But... that doesn't mean it couldn't..." she choked out through tears.

Fourth sat down next to her and put an arm over her shoulder. "There's a saying: yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery..."

"...But today is a gift. Some gift!" she cried. Again, the god smiled softly.

"Then consider this. You should do what you want to do. Even knowing that fate plays a role in your actions, would you change them?"

"I will never give up on Kyo. Ever," she stated, wiping her eyes.

"Then get up, get ready and go. Find him. Talk to him. Bring him back to the light."

In time, the tears ceased flowing and she got the energy to stand up. "I failed the last test, didn't I. I should have broken free of the illusion. I should have already known what you just told me."

"Yes and no, my dear," responded Fourth, also rising. "Do you remember what you learned from the first test?"

"That I should trust in the fate the goddesses had in store for me?"

"Yes, precisely."

"And?"

"Well, as a god, I went in and rescued you. Perhaps it was your fate to fail the test, which means you didn't fail. Fate exists for us gods, in different ways, of course, but it exists none-the-less."

Zelda nodded. "Then I'll leave." She walked to the exit and paused. "You really are nothing like your usual obnoxious self when it comes to helping others. That really means something to me. Thank yo-"

As she said this, she turned around to find Htruof's face three inches behind her and wearing a creepy smile.

"AH!" She screamed, slapping him hard across the face. "FORGET I SAID ANYTHING!" she yelled, then left in a huff.

Fourth chuckled, rubbing his cheek. "I guess I deserved that one... Ah well, mission complete in any case." And he followed in her footsteps.

**Well, I consider this one of the least cliff-hanger-y endings I've ever made, so not much to say. I did have a question for everyone, which is as follows: would you guys like a happy or sad ending? Just leave your replies in the comments! I could go either way, at this point. And remember, you can _still_ leave a comment even if you're not answering, I'm looking at you, random person that is reading this and _not_ planning on leaving a comment!**

**Joe out.**


	21. Chapter 7: Why is there a character lim-

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 7.  
>PLOT TWIST!<br>That is all.  
><strong>**  
>Many thanks to Dire Heart, LoZfanbman, alfred pierce, ajones yoshi(CHALLENGE COMPLETE!) and LightResurrection for your reviews as well as to those who are now following the story. Thank you all for the input last chapter, I'll be working on the ending soon, unfortunately. Only a few more chapters to go! (T_T) Have fun!<strong>

Chapter 7: _Your Insolence will not be tolerated_

"So, they plan on using the Triforce of power to tip the balance in their favor, hmm? Perhaps give it to Link as well? That would barely be a hindrance once I get to him."

"Of course, Master. You are the most powerful after all..."

"Very well, let them proceed with their plan. I will punish them accordingly for thinking they could get away with such criminal acts."

"As you wish, my Master."

"Come with me. We will hide out at the scene of the crime. When they arrive, we will be ready."

* * *

><p>Roy slept in the royal chambers. He would train with the best soon and he needed to be rested. Suddenly, a voice sounded from next to his bed. "GET UP YOU LAZY PUNK! IT'S TIME FOR YOU TO SUFFER!"<p>

Blinking groggily, the King sat up. The fourth god stood by him, eyes glinting menacingly. "W-what time is it?" he asked, scrambling to his feet.

His Master put his sword to his throat. "It's already four o'clock, slacker. If you're not in the courtyard in three minutes, this whole "training" thing is over."

"Y-yes sir!"

Three minutes later, Roy was scrambling to the side of his trainer. "I'm here, sir!" he panted. Unimpressed, Fourth sneered at him.

"And about time, too. I'm starting to doubt your conviction, foolish mortal."

"Never!" he growled. "He will die."

"We shall see. Sprint one hundred laps around the castle. I will return before you finish. If I don't, keep running until I'm back."

The king gulped. "Is... is that even..."

"You're saying something?" asked the god dangerously.

"No, not at all!" he answered, then started running. Fourth watched him go, amused though he didn't show it.

"Does jealousy really do _that_ much? Somehow, I don't think so..." He stretched. "Ah well... Guess it's on to the next pair." His body vanished into thin air.

If he had been paying a bit more attention to his surroundings, he might have noticed that Roy's eyes had a subtle red hue to them.

* * *

><p>Midna shuffled a little closer to the big, hairy, warm wolf that acted as her pillow. It might have been a bad idea to warp directly to Snowpeak after talking to Fourth, since it was a tad bit cold and they had no idea when he would meet them like he said he would. On the other hand, if he had showed up before they arrived they would have been in big trouble.<p>

"Link is lucky," she thought, "He has a ton of fur. I'm used to living in the Twilight realm. Not exactly a winter resort..."

Suddenly, as though some evil spirit has sensed her thoughts, her fluffy pillow began contorting, letting out barks of surprise. Suddenly shivering in the icy-cold air, Link returned to his hylian form. "What?" he exclaimed groggily, for he had been having a nice sleep.

"That's cheating. You make it too easy," came a familiar voice from the surrounding darkness.

Link's eyes snapped open. "Ah, Master. You've arrived."

"Yes. I'm here to give you your first test."

"We're ready. Hit us with your best shot," stated the Twilight Princess with conviction.

"Then shut up."

"Come again?" asked Link, surprised.

"You say your goal is to understand Kyo so that you might, if possible, find a way to bring him back, no?"

"Yes, that's exactly it," nodded the Hero.

"Then you must first learn to _feel_ other people's thoughts, emotions and desires. To do so, you will both stay up here for two days without speaking, without gesturing and without communicating via magic," explained Fourth. The wed couple stayed still for a moment.

"Though it seems a daunting task, I think we both understand the importance of it," began Link, "I would like to know, however, how transforming into a wolf has anything to do with communication?"

"Even though Kyo isn't a wolf, we would be getting the same experience to sense what is inside a living being's heart..." said Midna, trailing off. She was starting to get cold again and wanted her fur blanket back.

"Quite true, quite true. _But_, the point is not so much in the fact that his physical body is that of a wolf when he transforms. It's more that the exercise is more effective when uncomfortable, as it is more difficult to concentrate. When you finally confront Kyo, he may well be attacking you. A bit different from being warm and cozy, don't you think?"

"Wait, you mean to say..." stuttered Link.

"And to make sure you don't cheat, I'll be taking _this_ little beauty with me," he said, revealing the shadow crystal in his hand. "The exercise starts... now! Have fun." He winked and vanished.

Midna looked at her husband. It was going to be acold two days...

* * *

><p>Just chilling out in the grass of Hyrule Field, Fourth watched the sun begin to rise. "Well, I guess I'll just stay here 'till lunch then, he mumbled to himself. Meanwhile, in the sacred realm, all hell was about to break loose.<p>

"It _is_ in her abode, correct?" asked Nayru nervously.

"Of course. She left it there when her minion, what was his name again... Ganondorf, that's it, departed the world of the living by the hand of _my_ chosen wielder," answered her partner-in-crime.

"Are you still sure you want to do this now?"

"Of course."

"I think it would be wiser to stick with out original plan of waiting for "Master"," she said the word with utter contempt, "To leave on a "business trip" to reduce the odds of him finding out..."

"We don't have the time for that. He needs to be stopped as fast as possible. Your Hero is, by simple fact, not able to defeat the enemy. Neither of them, at this rate. _Mine_ on the other hand, has all the guts and will soon have all the power necessary to strike him down. One cannot fear a tyrant, for they thrive on that fear, they _rule_ by it."

Nayru nodded. "True words indeed... Very well, let us proceed."

Slowly, carefully, they advanced towards their goal: the shining red triangle that existed at the center of its surroundings. Farore made the first move, reaching out to touch it. Once she did, it was a simple matter of contacting the soul she wished to transfer its essence too. That was the plan that they had elaborated. The Hero of Time, as he was known, would then receive the third piece of the Triforce and with it, would have the ability to destroy _both_ their enemies.

Before she had the chance to do so, however, a strong power bowled her and her partner over, smashing them full-force and sending them flying away from the item they sought.

"Well, well... What do we have here?" chortled a cold, sinister voice. Nayru and Farore struggled to regain their composure as their Master approached them. "Just what explanation are you going to give me, I wonder, for this untimely expedition?" He had them cornered; they couldn't escape. "Even if you empowered Link to over 9000 times stronger than he currently is, he is nothing next to the power of the fourth Triforce. I've said it before and I'll say it again: _know. Your. Place_."

"We will never truly be your slaves, miserable fool! You can do nothing in this place. You who have lived only in the Light realm can never understand the energy at the base of here's existence. You control _nothing_! Din, you have humored him long enough, don't you think? Let us end this once and for all," yelled the goddess of courage.

Din, who had up until this point remained at Kyo's side, gave a start as she was mentioned. Looking down, embarrassed, she retreated a few steps.

"Traitor..." growled Nayru. Kyo laughed loudly, a snide, dark laugh straight from the depths of hell.

"It's true, I can not make you feel physical pain, humiliation, _trauma_ that I could in the Light realm. Since it seems you really _want_ to endure such sentiments, how about we move?"

"M-move?" asked the goddess of wisdom, sounding slightly nervous.

"Yes, I know just the cave to settle down in. A place I molded with my own hands. It should fit nicely _and_ provide you with plenty of cleaning to do."

"What are you planning!?" yelled Farore. The man laughed again.

"See you in the real world, slave," he smirked, then unleashed enormous magic power on the four of them.

* * *

><p>"YOU SAID 6:00 AM! IT'S ALMOST LUNCH TIME!" yelled a frantic Romal upon his Master's entry into his own domain.<p>

"I know."

Kitsune glared angrily at him. "We were worried something important had happened. How could a god forget an appointment?"

"You shut up and get back inside. I'm training _him_, not you, scum," sneered Fourth in what was possibly the most snide voice he had ever used. The twins took a few steps back, biting their lips, then turned tail and ran back inside, hiding their faces. The student watched them go, worried.

"Were they... crying?" he wondered to himself as his Master sat down on the front steps.

"So, why do you think I made you all worry like that? She's right, after all, I wouldn't forget something like that."

"So there _is_ a reason?"

"Certainly. I am _always_ training you, even if I'm not around. Now, following my train of thought, why do you suppose I didn't show up?"

Romal opened his mouth to ask how _he_ was suppose to know, but stopped. The point was that _he_ be able to think like his Master, so he couldn't rely on getting the answers every single time. He considered for a moment before he answered. "I assume something else came up, whether it concerned me or not, and knew that the other thing was more pressing. You wanted to show that one must prioritize."

Fourth raised an eyebrow. "I'm impressed. You are partially correct. It's true that being able to prioritize what needs to be done is necessary. When in war, for example, one must needs know whether to concentrate on offensive maneuvers, disrupting trade, raiding key villages, etc... What would you say, however, if I told you I spent the morning laying in Hyrule Field?"

Romal's eyes widened in surprise. "I... don't know..." he admitted.

"The lesson to learn is that you can't expect your plans to be upheld. When you cross blades with my old apprentice, if you expect him to block low and he attacks from the left, you're finished."

"The same way I expected you to show up and you didn't. If it had been a battle situation, I would be dead," the student finished.

"Excellent, you're already getting better at this. Now then, for your training today... I will answer one of your questions."

"My questions?"

"Back when I asked you to be my apprentice, you asked me three questions: what my plan was, how Kyo survived and how he managed to overpower the goddesses, remember?"

"Ah! That's right!" remembered Romal, startled, "Does this mean you'll finally explain something?"

"That's the idea."

"Without making a loud, annoying screech?"

"Precisely."

"And then we train?"

Fourth chuckled. "What I'm about to tell you _is_ your training. It is the basis of mine and Kyo's powers, for we have the same." He got up and walked a few meters away. "I have never, _ever_ physically trained in my entire existence-"

"As a god, you wouldn't need to, though, no?" questioned the heir.

"Nor the equivalent in the dimension of the Sacred realm." That was a bit different... "This is because we both Kyo and I draw our power from the same place. Can you guess where?"

The apprentice knew, of course, the answer. "The source of power from the fourth piece of the Triforce, balance."

The god did not answer immediately. He turned around and looked up at the trees swaying in the wind. "Tell me, young one," he said finally, "What is "power" to you?"

"Strength?" he shrugged, "The will to train?" Romal saw the back of his teacher's head incline.

"You're only half right. Power, it is true, comes from will. But will and strength are channels to power."

"I don't understand..." said the other, struggling to do so.

"Power does not come from training your body, that is just a mean of releasing your power in a limited capacity. The same goes for will: the will to fight is another outlight for what could be called your inner strength."

"And what is inner strength?"

"You."

"...I still don't get it."

Fourth faced him. "You're inner strength comes form you. Everything you know makes you who you are: powerful. From learning a secret sword technique to knowing which glass to use for which drink at a classy party, from writing a love letter to getting rejected, it all makes you grow, develop, become powerful. The wider the range of things you've experienced, the more situations you will be able to overcome. The stronger your conviction will be, the better you will fight."

"You mean that by simply living an everyday life anyone can be as powerful as you?"

"Indeed," he chuckled, "Not much to it, is there. But it does not suffice to simply live, obviously, but to believe, no, to _know_ that which I have just told you."

"... I..." mumbled Romal, brow furrowed. "That's... pretty abstract... What you're saying that I have to accept the fact that what you just told me is true?"

"You must not only believe me, but _know_ it is true, _know_ it as surely as you know that this very land exists," explained Fourth, gesturing around him. "So here is what you're going to do: today, you will help out around the mansion. I have arranged for there to be some minor blemishes that need repair, so you will help your two idiot sisters out and clean this dump up. When the day is done, sleep. When you awaken, I will be there and we will fight, and you will be strong."

"Because I have to. I need to help everyone."

"NO! You will be strong because you will. Because you _are_ strong. Did we not just say you had to _know_ that what I said was true? If so, then you know perfectly well you have as much power as do I or Kyo. It is essential you understand this."

The heir closed his eyes and rested his head in his hands. For some time, neither spoke. Finally, he looked up. "I... will try. But I still have one question..."

"Ask away."

"If what you said is true-"

"If?"

"_Since_. _Since_ what you said is true... I'm only 17 years old. Kyo has centuries behind him. He's had so much more time to live an everyday life, acquire new talents, experiences, memories... Doesn't that make him still immensely more powerful than me?"

It was Fourth's turn to stay quiet now. Then do something most un-godly: he plopped himself down on the grass and looked at the ground, averting his eyes. Romal hesitated. He didn't want to say the wrong thing, but was his Master actually wistful? He opened his mouth, "Um..." but quickly shut it again. He would wait until he was spoken to. And wait he did.

"I never told him," he said suddenly. The apprentice froze.

"Huh?"

"When I trained Kyo, I wished for him to discover it on his own. I wanted to avoid pampering him, not making him have to think, so I told him a lie..."

"A... lie?"

"I told him that he had the fourth piece to the Triforce, the one that bonded the rest together. He took the bait. How did he survive? Because he _knew_ he survived, he refused the fact that he would die despite whatever I had told him about that emergency power. He himself does not understand, at the moment, for he does not know that there is, in fact, _no such thing as the fourth Triforce_."

Romal gasped. Was he hearing right? "Did you say no such..." he trailed off, seeing the look of deadly seriousness on the others face.

"And now it would appear he made the same mistake I did when I first began exploring my power..."

The apprentice was getting more and more confused. "There was no fourth Triforce? A mistake?"

Slowly getting up, the deity began walking off into the forest. "Return the house to it's pristine condition then get some rest; tomorrow you and I will do battle."

Within the mansion, the twins were debating a matter of just as great importance. "Why is he such a jerk?" murmured Kits.

"Yeah," agreed Ami, "It started just after we warped from the medical ward to here... What could we have done in such a short time to make him hate us so much?"

"Hm..." nodded her sister, "Well either way, we have to get on his good side. We can't let Romal get all the attention. So how shall we go about obtaining his favor?"

Okami gave a wolfish grin. Kitsune started smiling as well. "You thinking what I'm thinking?" she asked.

"The way we always do, of course!" snickered the other.

* * *

><p>A small, blue-haired girl vomited blood as his knee once again plunged into her stomach. He yanked her towards him by the collar, her feet dangling in the air.<p>

"Oh, it hurts, doesn't it?" he laughed as she retched even more blood, powerless before her Master. "Try talking your way out of this one, you little bitch!" he yelled, then threw her with all his force, her head crashing into the wall. As though life-less, she slumped down on top of her already unconscious, green-haired sibling. The Master laughed.

"Well, now that _that_ minor inconvenience has been dealt with, I'll be off to conquer the first of two worlds. But first..." He approached his two beaten, bleeding prisoners, restraints in hand. "I wouldn't want these two lovely young maidens trying to avoid my gracious hospitality now would I?" He locked their hand and feet together, then to a peg in the wall.

"In this world, they no longer posses the power of the gods as I do. I am the only one with a Triforce here, therefore I am the most powerful! Remember that, my sweet, and watch over them for me, won't you?" he asked in a sickeningly sweet voice, tracing his third slave's cheek with his finger. Gulping back tears, she nodded.

"Excellent. The when you next see me, I shall be ruler of the Twilight. Oh and I disabled the trials, so you shouldn't be bothered by images of my imminent victory, cascades of deadly spikes or evil doppelgangers."

The woman shuddered. The man leered.

"See you soon, oh great goddess of power..."

And he vanished.

**SO MANY MYSTERIES AND SO LITTLE TIME! Will Fourth _ever_ make sense?**

**No, absolutely not. What are you thinking!?**


	22. Chapter 8: Dawn of the First Day

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 8.**  
><strong>Heh heh heh... No comment... Never fear, I WILL FINISH THIS STORY IF IT KILLS ME, DAMMIT! It's a good thing I've finally decided on an ending; that will make things much easier. My most gracious of thanks to Dire Heart, Robotfairy and LoZfanbman, as well as to all those wonderfull people (more than usual, somehow) who favorited and are following Dark Destiny!<strong>

Chapter 8: _Dawn of the First Day..._

Fourth rematerialized in Hyrule Castle's courtyard. He watch, somewhat amazed, as Roy came stumbling around the side, clutching his side and barely moving faster than a walk, but still very much active. Wishing to confirm his sudden suspicions, he extended his senses to the mind of his "pupil". Sure enough, he sensed interference in the mortal's thought process.

Motioning him to approach, he sat on a small wooden bench by the pathway upon which he had appeared. "So, 103 laps... You seem exhausted..." he said sympathetically.

"Yes... sir..." panted the King, practically throwing himself on the bench next to Fourth.

"YOU FOOL!" he yelled, "DO NOT SIT ON THE BENCH OF YOUR SENSEI!" This caused the other to jump in surprise, falling to the ground with a thump. "Today's training has only just begun!" he continued, "If you wish to be strong, you must train your body far past it's limits, as I have. With willpower like yours, no one could complete their training!"

"Yes, sir!" repeated Roy, struggling to get up, "I mean, no sir! I will continue training!"

"You had better..." sneered the god. "Very well, I shall lay out today's training for you. Your body is weak; to improve you will have to suffer. You will do, in sequence, push-ups, sit-ups and squats. Each time, you will do them until the associated limbs can no longer support your body. You will have 15 minutes of free time that you may spread out for lunch and dinner. At midnight, you may retire."

Roy gulped in fear. Stuttering, he mumbled "I-I'm sorry. I c-c-can't d-do that... I'm n-not s-s-sure anyone c-could..."

Fourth got up. Glaring menacingly and advancing towards the King, causing him to trip and end up back on the ground. The god raised a hand, poised to strike at his fearful prey, but never did.

Instead, he stuck out his hand to help him up. "'Tis a very perplexing situation you've gotten yourself into, is it not?" he asked calmly. Roy's eyes, previously closed in anticipation of a blow, snapped open.

"You... knew?"

"I guessed. It could have been someone else as well, after all."

Roy brushed the hand away a little roughly and stood up on his own. Resentful, red eyes glared at the most powerful man alive. Fourth tilted his head slightly.

"Does your love for him truly surpass your hatred of me? It shouldn't. Perhaps nothing should..."

Roy, or not-Roy as the case may be, said nothing, but furthered the distance between them.

"Do not expect me to believe you just happened to be here. The last time you communicated with me privately, well..." Fourth trailed off.

"That's enough!" the King blurted out. "You always have a plan. I just wanted to figure out what it was going to be this time..."

The god smiled wryly. "My plan is to do what must be done, nothing more."

Not sticking around to see the shocked expression on his face, Fourth disappeared and upon returning to the royal chambers, so did the light red glint in Roy's eyes.

* * *

><p>Everything was going the way it always did. Children were playing, adults were chatting over a drink, counselors came and went in an orderly fashion. After the hubbub of a few days ago, many of the Twili guards were glad that it was peaceful once again. That peace would not last long, however...<p>

Without the slightest pretense of subtlety, a violent crack sounded in the front courtyard and the space there distorted before taking the shape of the invading enemy. With a flick of his wrist and a glint of his eye, the few random passers-by that had the misfortune of being near that particular spot were picked up by invisible hands and thrown into the walls.

Suddenly, and understandably, there was a panic. Other civilians, those that were out of range of the attack, began yelling and running around, rousing even more confusion for those who did not see the events that had transpired mere seconds ago. The captain of the guard, who had been relaxing in the barracks, heard some sort of commotion outside. Grumbling in annoyance, he grabbed his weapon and hurried outside.

Meanwhile, Kyo was advancing nonchalantly towards the palace entrance, despite the various on-duty guards calling for him to stop. Just as he arrived at the door, it burst open and the captain rushed out, coming to a speedy halt upon noticing that the cause of the commotion was right in front of him.

"**Halt, in the name of the law!**" he commanded nervously.

"**Are you trying to stop me?**" asked the invader, "**I'm impressed. You have the courage to speak in such terms to someone so much more powerful than yourself, not to mention your sovereign...**"

"**S-sovereign?**" repeated the captain, taken aback.

"**Yes. I guess you could call this a "**_coup-d'état_**". As of this moment, I am in complete control of the political system of the Twilight realm,**" he declared, shocking everyone in the vicinity.

Sweat beading on his forehead, the captain looked to his companions-in-arms. Worryingly, most seemed quite reluctant to engage the enemy in battle. Well, that didn't matter. He was not, perhaps, the most _professional_ captain on record, but he hadn't been selected for nothing. Even if he was alone against an entire army, he would defend the people. Then again, that was pretty much the summary of the current situation, considering the enemy's power level... **(That is actually **_**not**_** a Dragon Ball reference)** So be it.

"**You have no such right! Stop now or you will be terminated!**" he said forcefully, drawing his sword for the futile battle that would claim his life. As he slashed his sword, though, it was not a fatal blow that followed. It was not even Kyo's own weapon that blocked his. Surprised, he looked to his side to see his predecessor, grimacing and using his own sword to protect the assaulted. Something shriveled up and died inside of the current captain as he saw his mentor's face.

"**Don't. It's not worth it...**" the older man sighed, shaking his head.

"**Not worth it!? It's the duty of the guard to protect the people, the royals and the system!**" he said, outraged.

"**Perhaps so,**" he responded, walking up to Kyo, "**But you can't do that from the Sacred realm.**"

The new captain looked away from both of them as the old one spoke to the man that he once called his friend. "You have won as easily as you predicted. If all you truly want to do is take over both worlds, you have no reason to harm any of us."

"Well," he smirked, "It could provide adequate entertainment to watch you squirm in pain. Luckily for you, I have other realms to conquer, so recreation will have to wait until I have fulfilled my purpose."

The old captain scowled. "You will not harm the citizens for Fourth will defeat you. You cannot go against the wishes of the goddesses and god unpunished. They are far superior in power, even to you."

"I know a few cute girls that would beg to differ. In the meantime," he continued, turning his back. "You may carry on with your pathetic lives for now. My simple instruction that even _you_ should be able to follow is that _no one_ is to travel to or fro between realms. Should someone do so, they will be eliminated by these..." he finished.

A red swirl engulfed a large, empty area in the courtyard, clearing to reveal an enemy that made everyone gasp. A few more than a dozen shadow beings stood there, slumbering, immobile.

"I'm sure you remember the... _potency_ of these formidable creatures, correct? Well, these are my own special little... _breed_. They are designed to be much stronger, much faster and much more agile. With only a thought, any one of you will be crushed. That also goes for anyone foolish enough to ask for help or to worship those so-called "Goddesses", might I add..."

Though the fight against the shadow beings had not lasted long, the impression they had given were one of fierce terror and unavoidable death. The old captain clenched his jaw; Kyo knew what he was doing. He was ruling by terror, like all dictators.

"Well, that's all for now... Good day..." said the invader, laughing at the looks of terror on everyone's faces. Leaving the regulation of the realm to his pets, he vanished as promptly as he came.

* * *

><p>Was he hungry? Cold? Angry? What the heck did he want!? Both Midna and Link were beginning to reach the limits of their patience. For the past ten minutes, the Hero had been grumbling to himself, but giving no visible indication of what was wrong.<p>

It was getting close to the end of their first day together without communication and frankly, Midna was already sick of it. For the first few hours, both had done their best to try to "talk" to each other, however they quickly found that such a thing was very difficult to do considering it was freezing and that they didn't really have anything to talk about anyway. Trying to guess a random subject seemed pretty much impossible from where they stood at the moment. To top it off, Fourth was probably not going to return until tomorrow night, or the day after, even.

Link was worried too. He had expected to be at least marginally capable of discerning his wife's thought process, but alas, 'twas not the case. "So basically," he summarized in his head, "We're starving, cold, totally unable to do as Fourth instructed and we can't leave until tomorrow night. He's also taken the shadow crystal_ and_ Zelda's gone, Roy has gone mad and our children are left the hands of someone who could probably be classified as "_certifiably insane_". Just great. Absolutely _fantastic_..." he grumbled to himself. "The only thing that could make matters worse is if..." His train of thought faded abruptly as he slumped to the ground.

Across from her, Link suddenly slumped down into the snowy floor of the make-shift igloo they had crafted. Completely forgoing the rules imposed by her Master, she crawled over to him and shook him frantically. "Link? Link! Say something!"

His response was not that she was expecting, but not entirely unexpected either. Suddenly coming into motion once again, he kicked her in the side, making her fall backwards and slide a bit on the icy ground.

The kick itself was not all that painful, but inwardly, Midna groaned. "_You_ again..." she mumbled, picking herself up from her fall. She no longer faced Link; she instead faced "version two", as she had come to call him, eyes gleaming green, as always.

"How dare you speak to me with such contempt! Do you have any, _any_ idea _whatsoever_ of just who the hell I am!?" growled v2.

"No," sighed Midna, "But I admit myself curious. What could possibly make you come back time and time again?"

"As if it was any of _your_ business, foolish Twili!" he sneered, getting up and making his way towards the exit. He halted abruptly upon seeing where exactly they were. "Why the hell are we on Snowpeak?" he asked, for some reason suddenly loosing much of his haughtiness and regal manner.

"Does it matter to you?" asked Midna, studying this sudden change in attitude to the best of her ability. "If you don't want to be here, just leave his body..."

"I... Can't do that right now..." he said nervously. "Something happened to my _real_ body, so I can't return to it for now."

Feeling more than a little awkward at the complete change of personality and events, the Twilight Queen motioned for him to take a seat along the edge of their shelter, which he did. "So," she began, planning to make best of the situation and learn as much as she could, "Would you care to say something about who you are? Maybe why you keep coming back?"

Regaining some of his rebellious nature, v2 looked disdainfully towards his companion. "To ask such things when your ignorance surpasses the level of stupidity I would expect from your kind, you must truly have no grasp of the situation."

"Firstly, I find that offensive. Secondly, if you think we have no grasp of the situation, you obviously have no grasp of it yourself. Our good friend needs our support, whether he knows it or not. We owe him every effort we can provide," she retorted, doing her best to keep calm and _not_ punch him in his ugly, snide, scornful face.

"You're talking about _Kyo_? What on earth could that scum have _possibly_ done to earn such trust?" he asked. Midna's eyes widened in surprise. How come every time they ran in to a mysterious stranger, that stranger seemed to know everything, and more, about the current situation.

"You call him scum? I'm wondering what he did to _you_ to make you hate him so much..." She shook her head. "That's beside the point. We know we need to stop him, even if it's not peacefully, but avoiding violence is always better."

v2 snorted. "Sheesh. You sound like a friend of mine. What are you, the goddess of wisdom?" His face once again contorted into disgust. "Or maybe Fourth is just manipulating you for his own maniacal purposes..."

"Fourth? Do you know him!?"gasped Midna. Who was this? Some _other_ crazed apprentice bent on revenge? The second Link sighed in exasperation.

"Well duh. I did, like, try to _kill_ him when we were in that medical ward and stuff..."

"Oh... Right..." said Midna, "I had mostly attributed that to your being insane..."

"Insane?" He laughed. "Let me ask you something..." Rising to his feet, he approached her. "Do you know how Fourth came into being? Do you know how Kyo came into being?"

The Queen narrowed her eyes, absorbed in the interesting turn of events that had spawned. "Fourth is a god, I assume he has always been around, and Kyo is his son."

"Fourth is not a god, but an imposter!" yelled v2, outraged.

"Then tell me what you know!" responded Midna, equally as annoyed.

"To me," continued the spirit inhabiting the Hero's body, completely ignoring her demand and speaking with barely contained rage, "Insanity is blindly following what such an obviously suspicious person says without making any attempt to uncover the truth! Have you not experienced the backlash of such foolishness first-hand? Or need I remind you why you are in the situation you are!? It's because you _assumed_ that Kyo was a nice person who had secrets and you _respected_ that!"

Midna looked away. Everyone had said that the god's son could be trusted. She vaguely recalled the words Zelda had spoken long ago... _"That may be so, but he has shown his loyalty to us in many ways. He probably has good reason to withhold that information. I, for one, trust him."_ Had that been a mistake? Was Kyo really just a bad person or was there some sort of reason behind his actions? If he really was just a tyrant, why had he worked so hard to help them battle Ghirahim? Had he really gone mad, as Fourth said? No. That didn't matter.

"If we can't trust each other, then we're doomed from the start. Kyo _did_ help us rid the Twilight of Ghirahim twenty-five years ago so we _will_ trust him enough to try and talk to him. If the goddesses didn't trust each other, they could not have worked together to create the world. We will follow their example," she retorted sternly.

"Trust!? TRUST!? WE _DID_ TRUST HER AND LOOK WHERE IT'S LANDED US!" he screamed.

Restraint utterly snapping, Link's body lashed out at the cause of it's annoyance, trying to pummel every last inch of her he could reach. Besides the fact she was being punched, Midna immediately noticed something was wrong. She was not one to train in physical self-defense and she could block these hits _far_ too easily. Link was still training, as his role as Hero demanded of him, but whoever this was could clearly not fight. There was no power behind the strikes and no strategy in the way he fought. Effortlessly, she fell back and performed some simple magic. Caught completely off-guard, v2 was entangled in the magic webbing that had spontaneously appeared.

Breathing heavily as the rush of adrenaline subsided, the Hero's body hung limp, entangled in shimmering orange string. Apparently, Midna noticed, he had no means of magical defense.

"I guess there's nothing to do but wait until you can calm down and think rationally, is there?" she smiled, glad to have put that snot-nosed bastard in his place.

"Um... Midna?" came a tone that made her freeze. "Is this... some kind of bondage?" asked Link nervously. Her cheeks flushed purple.

"That's it, you're sleeping outside tonight!"

* * *

><p>Zelda fell to her knees as she felt a surge of pain pass through her head. To avoid falling completely over, she grabbed the rock facade along which she was traveling. After meeting Fourth at the temple of illusions, she had begun making her way towards the temple of time deep in the forest.<p>

"_Fear not, I bring thee no further pain."_

She started. Was she finally losing it? Hearing voices in her head?

"_Share with me your body so our souls may strive..."_

The Princess unsteadily rose up again. "Where are you? Who are you?" she asked, carefully scanning her surroundings.

"_I am but a humble spirit requiring rest. A spirit of wisdom, for your convenience."_

"A spirit?" she wondered, bewildered. She knew that spirits existed and would sometimes interact with the living, but _possessing_ them? It was a possibility...

She was abruptly interrupted in her train of thought as another voice she wasn't expecting floated calmly down from atop the cliff.

"Still hanging in there, Princess?" winked Htruof. Zelda's expression drooped even further remembering the last time they parted. She was not really in the mood for this.

"Don't you have someone else's problems to deal with?"

"Why so serious?" asked the jester with a hurt look on his face.

"Because your knack for showing up every single time there's trouble is staring to become slightly creepy..."

"There's trouble?" asked Fourth, slightly concerned.

"Only if you start something, stalker..." retorted the Princess, realizing she had accidentally let on more than she had anticipated; an error she should not normally have made, she knew.

"Oh dear..." He shook his head, smirking. "Just what do you think a man such as myself would do to such a lovely young maiden alone in the forest? Please do not doubt the purity of a god..." he sighed mockingly.

"_Liar."_

Both froze. The voice that had, up until now, only manifested itself silently within the woman's mind surfaced.

"_You mustn't believe him, oh Princess chosen by the goddesses. He is as a snake, twisting and deforming the truth intending to devour you in one bite..."_

Zelda watched as the god's face darkened at the words she was speaking without consent.

"I have told you what I know. Anything beyond that cannot be my responsibility..."

"_Lies..."_

"Wait!" exclaimed Zelda, breaking into her own conversation, "He has not flat-out lied to us as of this point, has he? At least, the is no proof of him doing so, correct? We can't simply stop believing based on your statements..."

The voice was silent for a moment, then responded. _"The hidden temple of illusions was supposed to have been destroyed upon retrieval of the Dark Sword, correct? You saw it with your own eyes not long ago, yet Kyo claimed it was destroyed... At very least expect the Master to have taught the student such tricks..."_

Zelda's eyes widened. Even back then? Had Kyo lied to them? She looked to Fourth, seeking some sort of explanation proving Kyo's innocence. Her hopes were met only with a sturdy deadpan expression, making her heart tighten in her chest.

"The truth," he said, "Is something that has long evaded you... I will say no more, except," he turned away from the wide-eyed monarch, "That you will not find your son at the temple of time... Good day," he finished as he abruptly vanished. At the same moment, the voice in her head faded to silence. Panicking, Zelda ran all the rest of the way to the temple where the god had claimed he had brought her child only to collapse in defeat in an empty courtyard, completely devoid of life.

* * *

><p>Night had finally fallen over Hyrule after an exciting day for many. For Romal, training to be a god, it seemed a lot more exhausting then exciting. For some reason, as soon as Fourth had left earlier, the mansion had suddenly become in dire need of repair. After a back-breaking day hammering, sewing, cooking, dusting and washing, he had collapsed in a heap on his bed, falling to sleep immediately, completely unsuspecting.<p>

Unsuspecting, that is, that the god had returned that very night and was at that very moment climbing the stairs to the student's room.

Stepping on the steps he knew to be devoid of creaking, Fourth made his way up to his pupil's room. He had a purpose, of course. He wouldn't simply visit for no reason. In fact, he had _two_ reasons. "One of them," he thought, "Is waiting for me right here..."

Atop the stairs, the twins, Okami and Kitsune waited patiently, though half asleep, for his return. When noticing his presence, they awoke with a start.

"Returning home so late?" asked Ami, both closing in on him.

Various scenarios ran through the god's head. He was an expert at predicting possible outcomes and he always set himself up with the appropriate situations. Deciding on the reaction that would most likely produce the best results, he chuckled, bending over and brushing their cheeks. "Your time will come too. Fear not, my sweets, everything is going according to plan..." The twin's eyes widened in surprise at his attitude. "Sleep well tonight, for tomorrow, the true nature of your roles will be revealed as well..."

Stumbling a bit as they turned around, they quickly returned to their room with looks of stunned happiness. When they where out of sight, the god snorted under his breath. "Plan? Everyone seems to think I have a plan, don't they..." Quietly, he entered Romal's room. "Her comments certainly hit the right spot. Despite what I said..." At the bedside he raised a hand over the sleeping hylian. "After what happened to me, the goddesses wouldn't allow such power to be accessed so easily by mere mortals... Don't worry though, you just need a little... Unblocking..."

A flash of red light emerged from his palm, silently connecting with the sleeping subject.

"_As long as Kyo realizes nothing, this game will last for longer still..."_

**Thank you all for reading, and I hope you're having a _fantastic_ day!**


	23. Chapter 9: Dawn of the Second Day

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with chapter 9.  
>Well, that plan obviously backfired something huge... Excuses, excuses. Well, I've become a Computer Science student, so I've been all caught up with code and stuff lately. In fact, I'm working on what one might call a "FanGame". Not of LoZ, unfortunately, but of a JRPG called Persona 3. As a matter of fact, I'll have something to announce about that at the end of the story (god only knows when <em>that<em> might be if my current record is any proof). I will, naturally, still finish this story. Sometimes I just need a swift kick in the ass and for that, I have alfred pierce to thank this time. I promised it would be out this weekend and it IS. So, before we begin, I would also like to thank alfred pierce himself, Dire Heart and all those who favorited and/or are following this story even now. It means a lot.**

**Disclaimer: If only you knew the _power_ of lawsuits!**

Chapter 9: _Dawn of the Second Day..._

Roy was busily packing his bag. He had his sword and shield already attached to his belt and was now adding a few rations, sets of clothes and a canteen. Putting the last item in, he shut the clasp and noticed his hands were shaking. Clenching his fists, he swung the bag over his shoulder and rushed, grimacing, out of the royal chambers and towards the castle entrance.

It was a mark of how serious the situation was that not one guard attempted to dissuade him from embarking on this escapade. Walking at a brisk pace, he remembered what had happened when he had come to his senses.

Suddenly finding himself in the royal chambers, he had ran to find the nearest soldier and, completely disoriented, demanded to know what had just happened. At first, the guard seemed reluctant to answer the questions his obviously insane monarch was asking for fear that he would incur his wraith. He soon realized, however, that the King was acting differently than during the incidents of the previous days and reluctantly decided to humor him and repeat the events.

What Roy heard left him speechless, an iron weight in the pit of his stomach. He could hardly believe that he had dared do such things! And Zelda... He the last thing he remembered was his blood boiling upon hearing Link's snide comment about... The rift... Even if his heart was broken, shattered to a hundred thousand pieces, he would not lock up the closest friends he had and... What had he done during the time when he had been alone with them in their cell...?

Banishing such dark thoughts from his mind, he shook his head violently. He had best not think about it. It was not his fault. He was not in control of his actions, surely they would understand... Right?

Not even sure where he was going, he sped, now running full tilt, jaw clenched and a tear forming in his eye, out the castle gates, straight through the morning crowd of the town square and out of the walled-in boundaries.

He would find Link and Midna. He would find Zelda. He would fix things. That was what being a King meant.

* * *

><p>Zelda stepped deeper into the ancient ruins of the Temple of Time. She knew her child would not be there. She knew Fourth well enough to know that he wasn't the type of person, as Kyo had been, who would lie about something so simple. Advancing to the pedestal that held the Master Sword, the one that so many years previously she had seen fell the Lord of All Evil, she took a seat, relaxing her aching muscles, on the stone steps that surrounded the Blessed Blade.<p>

It had taken her most of the previous night to navigate her way through the briars and brambles of the forest, searching for the correct path that would lead her to the place she had been heading to.

Why should she keep heading there? That was the question she had been asking herself ever since learning that Romal was not going to be there to greet her. As soon as Fourth left, the voice in her head had gone silent. Now she feared it was returning, this time telling her to give up. To return to the castle and beg Roy to take her back. She could claim it was temporary insanity, an action taken in the heat of the moment. Perhaps, if she was lucky, Romal would never hear hide nor hair of her brief moment of blindness? She had initially not even been sure Romal was going to be here either. That had only been the initial plan. She had run away before she knew what the final decision had been. What Fourth had said, however, had left her to believe that they were, at very least, removed from the main action. If there was the only slightest chance they had left before her letter reached them...?

Breaking from her train of thought, she quickly squeezed her head between her legs, tightly shutting her eyes. No! She couldn't give up! Slipping off the steps, she laid down on the cold stone tiles, eyes searching the shimmering blue sky for an answer.

She was supposed to have the Triforce of wisdom, she mused, yet no enlightenment was coming. Breathing a heavy sigh, she went over the situation in her mind once again. Roy most certainly would be either searching for her or Kyo. Link and Midna, she had no doubt they were together, would likely be trying to find a way to overpower their enemy, to restrain him. Fourth... Probably nothing. No more than Kyo had done, anyway. She could only hope, and she almost hated herself for it, that he also would sacrifice himself for a happy ending. And Romal and the twins? Safe. She hoped...

So what about her? As hard as she tried, she could not feel the contented enlightenment that would usually come to her when immersing herself in the power emanating from her left hand. Had the goddesses forsaken them? Troubled by matters, as Fourth put it, "beyond mortal comprehension"?

She closed her eyes for a moment. Around her, the forest brimmed with sign of life. Small mammals drank from the stream, insects swarmed around sweet scented flora, fish swam, birds flew and chirped.

Exhausted from the night's trek, she slowly dozed off, succumbing to her body's needs.

A dream came to her. She stood in a large room. A room full of the scent of blood. In front of her were Kyo and Fourth, back to back yet still looking at her. She wanted to say something. She wanted to ask for the truth. She wanted the reason. Somehow, though, she couldn't open her mouth. "_Lies_" they both hissed, so suddenly that Zelda jumped back. They turned to face each other. "_Lies_" they repeated, swords crossed. Was it her imagination or was the tone different this time? As if for one it was a question, and the other an affirmation.

As though suddenly noticing her presence, the two men dropped their weapons. She could no longer even move. The two of them marched on her, eyes blank, a deep white. "_What is the truth!?_" they screamed.

Startled, she woke up. An old-looking monkey with a flower on its head was looking at her curiously. She knew now. She recognized that room. Large, empty, keeper of secrets. She would find them there, she was sure. Perhaps the others would be there as well. "I can see the end..." she muttered to herself, preparing to depart once again.

* * *

><p>The goddess of wisdom awoke with a start as an object forcefully collided with her side. Next to her, her sister was also startled awake. As they scrambled to their feet, a roaring laughter filled the echoing room. "You should have seen yourselves! Since when do <em>almighty<em> goddesses need something like _sleep_? Such a _mortal_ need..." Kyo laughed once more. "Perhaps I will need to expend the resources to _feed_ you as well? You're becoming more costly than you're worth..." he finished, his voice threatening.

Meekly, the goddess, by name, of power shuffled forward with a plate of unappetizing goo. Chu jelly... While the other recoiled before the "food", Farore swung her hand, knocking it out of her sister's hand. As it smashed to the ground a short distance away, she angrily yelled "You believe us to be so weak? We are goddesses! We are not meant to be in this ethereal world! Our entities are not designed for the needs in this world, of course we are weak! But we cannot be destroyed by the likes of you, a fake god! Only those who truly wield the power of the sacred realm pose a threat to us!"

Kyo leaned forwards, looming over them. "Oh, but I do," he mused, showing his glowing left hand. More than you could even imagine..." He chuckled. "Of course, you still had the nerve to talk back to me..."

As fast as the physics of the land of the living would allow, his foot swung up, solidly connecting to the goddess's chin. Arching back, she flew a good ten feet before crashing to the ground, once again unconscious. Nayru, who had the wisdom to not provoke her master, quickly retreated to her fallen sister's side. Before she could reach her, however, Kyo reached out and picked her up by the collar.

"Leave her," he ordered, "There is cleaning to be done. I have a feeling that some most unwelcome guests will be arriving soon and we must show them a..." he chuckled again, "_warm_ welcome..."

Regretfully, the slave complied, leaving her powerless brethren a crumpled heap on the floor and beginning her daily duties.

"And us, my sweet," he whispered in Din's ear, "Let us relax and await the fateful day, the promised day, when I will fulfill my destiny and rule this land justly, as it was foretold..."

* * *

><p>Link and Midna woke up around the usual time. The events of the previous night not yet forgotten, Midna refused to speak to her husband. Of course, considering their current situation, that was what was supposed to happen anyway. Surprisingly, Link found, it was a lot easier to read what she wanted in such situations.<p>

"Though it pains me to admit it," he thought, passing her more breakfast, "That's probably because I've found myself in this situation so many times I've gotten used to it... Beyond that," his thoughts turned on more serious matters, "It would appear that whoever is possessing me has an attitude problem." He snorted. "Not that _that_ wasn't already apparent... No, rather there seemed to be little to no reason that this person was doing things like that... Is there something all situations in which I've been possessed have in common?"

Midna had been sitting with her hand outstretched for about a minute already. "Damn wolfy, spacing out like that..." she mumbled to herself. "Hey man-slave, how about giving me something to drink, hmm?"

Roughly, he smacked her hand away. "Just who are you calling your _slave_, you haughty bitch?" he growled.

"Oh goddesses, not again..." she thought, preparing some more restraining magic just in case things got ugly again. "Link is my husband, so I get to treat him as only a wife would, naturally."

Obviously remembering the disastrous turn of events of the previous visit, he trembled with rage, but seemed capable of containing it. "Your backwards traditions have nothing to do with me, peasant. In my presence, you are but an inferior being. You should be grateful that I am sparing your life... _this_ time..."

"Coming from the person who was so easily overpowered last time..." Midna shook her head. "That statement has very little credibility..."

A slight flush came to Link's body's cheeks. "Someday your foolishness will cost you your life and when it does, do not come crying to us for forgiveness. Your plan will fail if you insist on consorting with that cursed "god". The fallen hero. The _failed subject_..."

Somehow, his own words seemed to be stirring him into a frenzy. Midna, on the other hand, had furrowed her brow. "Did he just say "us_"_? Does that mean there are others? Others being possessed, too?" Sensing that she hadn't much more time to think before he would lose control of himself and attack her, she quickly broke the atmosphere.

"Our plan is what it is," she stated, "And our cause noble. We are not, unlike yourself, willing to lose all trust we once held without second thought. Whatever you know about it is only a fraction; we _must_ succeed, therefore we will. If it turns out he is irredeemable, we will have to fight him and..." she closed her eyes for a moment, "Most likely fall to his blade. _But_, we will still try, if only because he plans to kill us either way. Fourth, if he becomes a problem as you so vehemently claim he will, can be dealt with after. I cannot imagine we are helping some evil plan of his by dissuading Kyo from his goal. Besides..." She smiled nostalgically. "I still have a debt to Zelda from so long ago. Perhaps this will be the way to finally pay it off."

"So you admit you reasons to be somewhat personal as well?"

"Of course. There is no one in the world who is perfectly selfless. Not even the goddesses themselves. I'm sure they had personal reasons for creating this world as well."

For a moment, neither said a word. Link's body stood before a still-seated Midna, looking down at her; contemplating her. Then suddenly, as though remembering something of extreme importance, his green eyes widened and abruptly left their colored state. Losing his balance, the real Hero fell sideways to the floor of the shelter.

"Are you alright, wolf-boy?" she asked, helping him back up. Regaining his balance, he said: "I see this time presented less of a problem. What happened on your end?"

"My end? Does that mean..."

"Yup, we're leaving."

"What!?" she exclaimed in surprise. "Where and why? Fourth told us to stay here and train. We've been doing everything but!"

"Well," he began, "Don't interrupt. I'll tell you what I've concluded. First of all, I know where Kyo is."

"What!?" she repeated, incredulous.

"Hush, I'll get there." He silenced her with a wave of his hand and began gathering the few things they had and packing them. "At the very end of being possessed, I "woke up", but I wasn't here, I was at the tenth temple. It's as though I swapped bodies with someone there for a short time... Regardless, the point is that I saw Kyo. He must have turned that into his base."

"Where you got the Dark Sword? How can you be sure that's where you were?"

"The place is fairly recognizable. Big room, rocky. True, there were some new furnishings here and there, a few chairs, but as a whole I knew immediately where I was."

Suddenly, another familiar voice flowed in from outside: "And your plan for being on terms with Kyo, to communicate with him?" asked Fourth.

Link sighed for a moment. Silence ensued as he quickly finished packing and the couple walked out onto the freezing mountaintop. Fourth was waiting for them. Not pressing for an answer, but obviously prepared to force them to stay unless they gave a satisfying one.

The Hero looked down for a moment, Midna watching him, wondering what he would say. Finally, he looked up. "We'll have to fight him." Fourth merely tilted his head slightly. "What I mean," he continued, "Is that we don't know enough about him. We have only ever fought alongside each other. The only link we have with him is one of battle. If we can meet on even ground such as that, we may be able to read him. We know only that aspect of him, and we know it well enough."

This time, Fourth's head tilted in the other direction. Nobody moved until Link scratched his growing stubble. "I'll be happy when this is over and I can finally shave again..." He sighed. "I'm getting too old for this shit."

Fourth cracked a smile. "I know how you feel, Hero," he said as he walked away.

* * *

><p>"You slept in late. I assume you worked well?"<p>

Romal yawned widely. "You said "some repairs"... The entire thing was falling apart as I walked from one place to another..."

"I must admit," nodded Fourth, "You did a surprising amount. I fixed the rest up on my own when I returned, but you got farther than I thought you would."

The student smiled. "Kits and Ami really know their stuff. They taught me how to do most of it."

"I'll make sure to thank them later then," said the Master with a snort. "In the meantime, come forward." Romal descended the front steps of the mansion. Now somewhat nervous, he stood a half dozen meters away from his Master, across the entry way. If he remembered correctly, he had been warned they were going to fight.

"I can tell you know what's coming, so let's cut to the chase, shall we." Suddenly his _aura_ changed. He was in no way in a "battle stance", but he was ready. Knowing that he was going to have to make an effort, Romal prepared himself mentally. If he was honest with himself, he knew he still had difficulty believing that he could gain power so easily... On the other hand, he felt ready. Perhaps it was foolish dreams of heroism or unfounded optimism, but he wasn't about to let those possibilities deter him. He also prepared himself.

In a flash, as soon as he sensed his adversary was ready, the Master dashed forward. Amazing speed. Romal was sure he was about to experience intense pain, but to his surprise, his hastily raised hands caught the foot that was extended toward him. Both stayed in this position for a brief second, a mere moment to solidify a young man's faith, then action returned.

It was a high speed conflict. The fight was a blur of action and reaction; a defense of instinct and an attack of will. Though it was obvious the student had no idea what he was doing, it was awing that the meek teenager could fight as he now was.

Finally, one too many hits connected and the student was propulsed backwards, falling a few feet back, panting. Fourth advanced on him, helping him up. "You are obviously better than you were before, but still far too weak. I was barely making an effort, yet I still won. Remember that your true enemy will have a sword. Even a single hit will be fatal."

Between heaves, Romal responded: "I thought you said I had to know I'll win..." He coughed a little. "Then I should know I won't get hit. It's irrelevant."

"Well said," approved the Master, "But while overconfidence is required, stupidity is not. In a fight like the one we just had, you could exchange receiving a blow in order to deal a more powerful one. Strategy is part of knowledge, thus part of power."

Leaning against a tree, too wiped out to argue, he just nodded. "You're right, you're right... You're _always_ right, actually. I'm not sure why I bother sometimes..."

Fourth watched him regain his strength for a moment, then motioned to his student to follow him.

Behind the mansion, they arrived to a small back yard with two tables set up in the middle. On each of the tables, a goat was tied down. Confused, Romal advance towards the animals, who were bleating helplessly. "What exactly are these here for?" he asked.

"This is you next test," stated Fourth. Approaching him, he took out a long, sharp knife and handed it to the young one. "Kill the goats." He offered no further explanation.

The student looked from the knife in his hands to the helpless goats on the tables, mind working furiously. He could come to only one conclusion. "He wants to know whether or not I can bring myself to kill something. Perhaps he thinks I was trying not to hurt him when we fought... I hate to disappoint you, buddy, but I was trying my best to bash your face in. Or perhaps it is another "experience" to add to my list; to make me stronger... Knowing him, he probably has a really deep reason for this. I can't wait to hear it..." Looking directly at his target, he stabbed without hesitation.

A cry filled the air. He froze. It was an all to... _hylian_ cry. Horrified, he looked up to his Master as the illusion slowly melted away.

On one table, still squirming with the knife stabbed deep into her torso was Okami. On the other, Kitsune was the one tied down, yelling, screaming and crying at once. Slowly, yet in an instant, Romal went from horrified to angry. To furious. To murderous.

Without a moment's hesitation, he launched himself at the diabolical psychotic that had thought up such a twisted _task_. This time, the fight was truly deadly. Dodging and twisting away from the blade he himself had provided, Fourth was on the defensive for the first time.

Finally, his unclear mind got the best of him: an opening. Not hesitating either, Fourth spun-kicked him in the side with enough strength to make him crash into the wooden wall of the mansion behind him.

Even more groggy than before thanks to the small concussion he just received, Romal attempted to get up again, only to fall down at the feet of the man he currently hated the most in the world. Fourth was saying something. He wouldn't listen. He wouldn't hear the taunts.

"The lesson," said the Master calmly, "Was not to trust me. You seem to accept everything I say as true... _You mustn't. _You are you and I am I. Never trust anyone's ideas as you trusted mine, for they are not your own. I present you only with situations that _I_ believe will help you. If you believe so as well, then obey. If you don't, don't. You need a reason to obey me, not to _dis_obey me... What matters is that you always trust yourself more than others. And, as convoluted as it may seem, if you trust someone, then _trust in that trust_. If you don't, _don't_. There is no middle ground after so long.

Suddenly, as suddenly as he had wanted to kill Fourth, something in Romal's mind clicked. Such an _obvious_ notion, but that could never be found another way. The subtle hints that he had been given throughout his short training had all been leading to this point. According to his father, there was a step _beyond_ trust; a step where reason isn't needed, in fact it mustn't exist. A trust that was either there, or wasn't. But in this case...

Mind clear, body ready, Romal raised himself to his feet, knife still bloody in his hands.

"Kill Kitsune," Fourth ordered.

Their eyes met for the briefest of seconds, a moment of mutual comprehension, then Romal did as he was told. More screams of pain echoing in his ears, he stabbed her through the head.

Again, the illusion melted away. Two blocks of wood, two bare tables. The blood on the knife: gone.

"You are ready. Let us go," said Fourth. Romal nodded and they headed off, away from their temporary home.

The scene had also been terrifying to the two spectators, watching from the upstairs window. Before their brother had awoken, the god had come to them, that in and of itself a remarkable occurrence. "Be ready," he had said, "Observe us in silence. Do not let him notice you. Your role begins with observation, and lives on as information. When we leave, wait five minutes and leave as well. A hundred meters down the path, there will be a magic circle drawn. It should bring you to the edge of Faron forest. From there, go to the Hero of Time's old abode on the outskirts of Ordon Village. In the chest in the basement is a letter. Your destiny lies in retrieving it. Then meet your families at the tenth temple your father sometimes speaks of, in the mountains. For me, it is the most important destiny, far greater than glory in battle. Goodbye."

**And until next time, howdy! (obscure reference)**

* * *

><p><strong>As a side note, there should be two more chapters left. And one <em>grand<em> reveal. Stay tuned to find out more! (another obscure reference)**


	24. Chapter 10: Dawn of the Third Day

**Hey all, Joe Elf here with chapter 10!**

**And about damn time, too, might I add. I WILL FINISH THIS IF IT KILLS ME! There's only one more chapter after this, then maybe a short epilogue and the series will be complete. Just in time for me to start another one! I'm off in Asia right now and the 30 hours of air-time have given me some ideas for my next project, but more on that some other time. It is now time to thank alfred pierce for his review all well as the people who followed/favorited this story and go on with the show.**

Chapter 10: _Dawn of the Third Day..._

Roy was having trouble finding his way around. He had never particularly been the adventurous type and had not often left Castle Town other than to travel to Ordon, Kakariko Village or to the Twilight Realm. Even at those times, there was usually some sort of escort that brought them exactly where they needed to go. This time, however, he was completely on his own without so much as a compass to guide him.

According to his logic, looking for Kyo and looking for Zelda were, in essence, one and the same. His wife was looking for her former love and Kyo, damn his soul, did not seem like he was adverse to the idea... He also concluded that the overlord was not likely to be using any sort of mobile base, since he did not need to worry about being found at all. That left only one thing: where was Kyo and, soon, the former Queen? The kingdom was vast and ripe with hiding spots that he would never discover... Going directly to his rival was out of the question. That left only one option: find Zelda. And where would _she_ be? They had been together for a while, after all, he could at least guess at her movements...

The Temple of Time.

There was a slight possibility she knew where their child was and if she did, she would have gone there.

And from there...? Once she had ensure Romal's safety, and assuming nothing happened along the way, she would have headed out to the place where she believed it most likely that Kyo be. That, again, was a problem. Whilst the King knew a little about the hero that saved the world shortly after the defeat of Ganondorf, he did not know much about him. Indeed, from what Link had told him, the others knew very little as well... Was there perhaps some secret that only Zelda knew? That he had confided in her before disappearing? No. That would be too much to assume, considering the circumstances. He would start by finding the most likely place for Kyo to be in general, then if that didn't work he would move on. So where?

Roy looked out over the fields of Hyrule to the mountains, far away. "The place it all started..." he muttered, "The place where that adventure began. The hidden temple of which Link spoke."

That settled it. Destination in mind, he return to the castle and fetched a horse, a brilliant white stallion, and galloped full tilt in the direction of the "hidden village". He didn't know exactly where he was going, but he would find out.

* * *

><p>Zelda leaned up against the rock facade of a nearby tree. In retrospect, trying to sprint all the way from the Temple of Time to the Hidden Village had been a pretty bad idea. On the bright side, she was almost to the outskirts of Ordon now... Again, she cursed herself for not thinking of bringing more appropriate attire when she left in a rush. Sitting down on the ground for a moment, she closed her eyes. As urgent as it was for her to get to Kyo as quickly as possible, she knew she would have to be prepared, and that meant <em>not<em> being tired as all hell. She had just decided to take a short nap when it happened again.

"_Hurry..._" a voice in her head pleaded. "_We need your help..._"

"What!?" She jolted upwards at those words energy born of adrenaline coursing through her.

"_End it. Be strong. Show no mercy, or the demon will feed off your soul..._" Without giving her a chance to respond, the voice slowly faded away once more.

Panicked, and energy now back to full, the former Queen ran off again. She wasn't sure just what that spirit was, but it must have been related to current events somehow. And if that was true...

"The demon will feed off your soul, eh..." she panted, "If that's what it takes for K-... peace... then so be it."

* * *

><p>Silence. Complete, total, silence. Kyo hadn't spoken a word in hours. He only sat, eyes closed, on his throne of rock. Knowing that this did not mean that he would likely forgive any mess-ups, Nayru kept cleaning out the immense cave. A task that, seeming easy at first, was proving to be quite a challenge considering the size of the aforementioned area. Farore, on the other hand, was not as docile. Whilst refusing to to their "Master's" bidding, she was repeatedly glaring at their sister, goddess of power, who did naught but shuffle uneasily every time she felt the piercing glare.<p>

Ever since the beginning, the issue of Din's alignment had been the cause of much torment for her sisters. Power... To so many, as was the case with Ganondorf, it was the strongest Triforce. And yet power is useless without courage or wisdom. What Din lacked, in order to make the right decision... Which was it? Though they did not understand it, the two slaves knew perfectly well what was preventing her from siding with them...

On this side, in this world, they were powerless to stop them. They could only pray. Pray that the heroes they chose would come through and save the day as they always had.

Suddenly, they felt the stern, unforgiving gaze of their captor upon them. Farore sneered slightly at his disapproval but reluctantly regained her work as he scolded her: "I was not aware courage was synonym to _stupidity_... Hurry! They are coming at last, I can feel it! They will all bow before me," he finished, regaining his previous posture. Closing her own eyes, the goddess of wisdom silently connected to her representative. She had to warn her; tell her to hurry. If she did not, all those she loved would fall victim to Kyo's cruelty.

But in times of strife, to whom does a goddess pray?

* * *

><p>Far too slowly for Romal's taste, he and his Master strolled down the still-forested road leading away from the mansion. Since the small incident from around an hour ago, neither had spoken a word to each other. While trust was good and all, it didn't make things any less awkward for the teen. On top of that, his Master still hadn't answered most of the questions he had said he would at the beginning of his short training. Sighing, he once again went over what he wanted to know.<p>

He had wanted to know what his plan was... Well, that had more or less been cleared up: he was supposed to deal with the situation. Not that he understood _why_ the God would go through such trouble... Next, how Kyo had survived. Well, something to do with "knowing" he was going to survive, or willing it, or something. Finally, how he had managed to beat the Goddesses into submission. Still nothing on that front... And something else was bothering him as well...

Somewhat annoyed that his apprentice was shuffling slightly from hesitation, Fourth stopped and faced him. "If you have a question, speak," he ordered, "It is better not to be burdened by thoughts when entering a mortal combat, especially if it is your first..."

Eyeing his Master, Romal took a breath and asked. "There is one more question that you have not answered..."

"Then remind me."

The student nodded. "How did Kyo manage to force the Golden Goddesses into submission? As powerful as he may be, the Goddesses should surpass even him..."

"... It is not an easy question to answer, for I can only guess at the Goddesses weaknesses. However, if he defeated them it was not through combat, but by treachery."

"What do you mean?"

"Because he is my son, he is a demigod. As such, he can travel from the Sacred Realm to the "real world" as he wishes, therefore killing him as a normal hylian would not be enough. They would have to completely obliterate his spirit in order to make him disappear for good and, considering his status and power, that would take the strength of the three goddesses combined."

"Why? He is still only a demigod, so why would it take do much to destroy him?"

Fourth paused for a moment, contemplating the best way to explain. "The power that I hold and that he unknowingly mimics is very close to what an actual "Triforce of bonds" would be. It is comprised of an amalgam of the three original powers, that is to say wisdom, courage and power." He sighed. "With a little extra power thrown in there, of course... The point is, these powers are what keep his spirit alive. To break them, each "portion" need be eliminated."

"In other words..." realized Romal...

"In other words, if one of the Goddesses for some reason refused to destroy him, the Goddesses cannot touch his spirit," he finished.

"But why!? Why wouldn't they stop him?"

The Master turn around and shrugged. "She must have a reason."

"On that train of thought," continued the teen, Nayru would be wise enough to see that he had to go..." His eyes slowly widened. "... and Farore would have the courage to stand up to him, no matter what so..." Reaching his conclusion, he look to his Master for some sign of confirmation.

No response.

"I have another question..."

"Ask away, kiddo."

"Why are we walking? If you believe-... Since I am ready to take on Kyo, could we not warp to his location immediately?"

"Simple. This morning, as well as for the pas few days, I have been setting a side-plan in motion. I wish to ensure that it is beyond the point of no-return before we proceed to our final destination. Anything else?"

For some reason, Romal sensed that his teacher was somehow tense. He _did_ have another question, but this didn't seem like the best time to ask... "No. Let's go."

"Don't lie to me."

"_Well, so much for that plan..._" he thought. "It's about Kyo," he began. Fourth snorted.

"Of course it is. What else would it be?"

"You say you're his father... But... Well..." He nervously licked his lips. "Who... Was the mother?"

As soon as he asked, he regretted it. He noticed the god's fists clench and unclench out of the corner of his eye and mentally prepare for an attack.

"Let's go," he growled, completely ignoring the question. Then without waiting for a response, he briskly continued down the path. Deciding never again to ask that question, Romal followed in his steps.

He was still curious of course, but upon reflection he understood why the mention of Ms. Fourth would anger the god. If Kyo was a demigod, then she would have been a hylian. Probably one of the very first to live. She would have died a long time ago... The memory of her what with everything else going on must have been difficult... Had he not said that he knew the answer to a god's love?

The teen shook his head to clear it. That wasn't important. Right now, he had to prepare himself to fight for his life, not remember an age-old love story.

"_Very well, Kyo,_" he thought, "_Prepare yourself, for I will show you no mercy._"

* * *

><p>"THAT FUCKING ASSHOLE!" she yelled. <em>Again<em>. If he didn't know better, Link would have scolded her for repeatedly yelling the same obscenity. Of course, his years of experience as her husband had proven to him that such an action would definitely result in... _bad_. Result in _bad_. He instead simply sighed once more and continued down the trail. "I can't _believe_," she was saying for the nth time, "That he didn't give us back the fucking shadow crystal!"

It had taken them only a few seconds after Fourth had teleported away from them to realize that he had kept the precious crystal and that they could no longer warp around since Link could not turn into a wolf. That left them to walk the entire distance between Snowpeak and the Hidden Village.

Link was, naturally, no happier than Midna about all this. He wanted to move _fast_. As fast as possible in order to intercept Kyo before he could do anything else. As much as he wanted to believe that he was just sitting around in his cave waiting for them to show up and beat his crazy ass, that was, technically, not assured. On top of that, they were about as far away as possible from their target. That meant that if someone else that would be looking for him, mainly Zelda, knew or guessed where he was...

That could end up messy. Though he didn't want to say it vainly, Link was pretty sure he, as the one with the most combat experience, would be the most likely to survive longer in a fight if it came to that.

Not long, but longer.

Clenching his teeth he grabbed his wife by the hand, momentarily distracting her from her rant. "Come on, let's hurry," he urged, breaking out into a jog.

Still disgruntled, Midna joined him. As he ran, he look to his destination. Kyo was the one and only friend he had ever lost in combat. He had come close with Midna. He had come close with Zelda. Somehow, it all seemed like a bad prank gone horribly wrong. Like something out of a piece of classic literature. "A friend-turned-enemy comes back and his long-time friend must fight him and protect the people while needing to overcome their past friendship to do what's right" or something.

"_Story of my life, right there,_" he thought to himself. "_It's almost as if I'm the reincarnation of characters in ancient legends where stuff like this happened..._" He sighed. "_Just my luck that the heavens chose _this_ reincarnation to act up._"

"They're like children!" Link almost jumped as Midna suddenly voiced her opinion between huffs. "Going at each other with grudge matches and smacking each other over the head for trivial reasons."

"Like?"

"Breaking rules, not leaving when they don't want to talk to you, pent up egos, Messiah complexes... The list goes on and on. There are five of them for crying out loud! I can understand a little animosity, but this has blown out of proportion. I mean, _enslaving_ the goddesses? What kind of power-trip is that?"

They slowed to a halt, taking a short break. "I disagree," frowned Link. "The actions they've taken against each other do seem a extreme, but we don't know the full story. We can't be sure there isn't something else behind all this. The spirit that's been telling us to be wary of Fourth? The whole part about not helping soothe Kyo? If he's on the same footing as the Goddesses, then he shouldn't have any reserves about helping. _They_ don't. I feel like there's something else going on here. Like what we're trying to do won't end this..."

Midna fell quiet. The last time Link had felt this way, it turned out Zant was being controlled by a superior evil in the form of Ganondorf. For a moment, the long time partners looked at each other. Finally, the Hero broke the silence.

"All right, thumbs up. Let's do this."

* * *

><p>Okami peeked once again out the window, causing her sister to sigh. "They're gone, alright? We're supposed to wait five minutes then leave! It's already been more!"<p>

"Fine, fine," grumbled the other. "Let's go..."

Locking the door behind them, all things considered a pretty unnecessary step, the twins began making their way down the path that Romal and Fourth had taken earlier. "He said a hundred meters, right?" asked Kitsune. That would be just after the path took a sharp turn and led off out of sight. Typical. Rushing now, they reached the bend and turned.

On the ground were some odd, glowing runes, the likes of which they had never before seen. Even the magic of the Twilight realm didn't resemble it. They were also different than what you could expect from runes. Instead of forming the usual lined circle on the ground, this one was a small glowing dot hovering a few feet off the ground surrounded by a spherical layer of rotating characters in a language they had never seen before. Bracing herself, Ami reached out her hand, Kits mirroring her movements, then they stepped through.

It was nothing like the normal transportation magic they were used too. Instead of the slightly disconcerting sensation of separating into smaller particles, it felt like being stretched beyond physically possible, though without the painful side-effects that would have. And in barely any time at all, it was over and the twins stood on another small path, albeit one on the edge of the Faron woods. They glanced at each other, then hurried on their way to complete their instructions.

* * *

><p>Fourth stopped suddenly, extending his arm to stop Romal as well. "What is it?" the later asked.<p>

"My plan has successfully initiated. We can warp out now," he indicated.

"About time..." the student grumbled as the other made a small movement with his hands.

"I heard that. Alright, this is it," he announced, suddenly clenching his fist.

After a moment of uncomfortable and indescribable sensation, Romal looked up to find that they were now directly outside their destination. The cliff side had been smashed down, forming a makeshift path to a door that would have previously been hidden from sight.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped forward. Reaching the door, they slowly pushed it open.

* * *

><p>Sprinting furiously, Roy made his way from the old lady's house to where she had indicated. She had seemed surprised that yet another stranger was looking for the place, which led him to believe he was on the right track.<p>

Soon, it came into view. There was section of cliff that had been collapsed, showing a door; the entrance to the tenth temple. He had already ditched his horse at the entrance to the Hidden Village, which had been a good move, apparently. Besides the fact that he had wasted a bunch of energy running up to there... Oh well.

Re-composing himself, he climbed up to the door and opened it.

* * *

><p>"Damn!" Link swore as he just managed to see Roy climb up the cliff and out of sight. After what had happened last time they met, he and Midna were not about to compromise their position so easily.<p>

"If he's here, there's a good chance you're right about Kyo's whereabouts... _And_ that things are about to get very ugly, very fast, if he hasn't cooled down yet..."

For a moment, the Hero stayed silent. Just long enough for Midna to wonder if he had perhaps once again been possessed. However, he was just being silent. Shaking his head once, to himself, he did not respond, but began accelerating towards the door, the Twilight Queen following suite, and bursting into the room beyond.

* * *

><p>Zelda was huffing and puffing, leaning up against the edge of the bridge. Somehow, she had managed to run all the way from the edge of the Hyrule Fields to the bridge of Eldin without stopping. Considering her physical fitness, as a former Queen and all, that was pretty impressive.<p>

She did not, however, have time to be impressed with herself. Knees shaking, she started heading off again, this time at a slow walk. As soon as she no longer felt as though her legs could collapse any second, she would take off again. She was almost there and the closer she got, the stronger the ominous sensation she had felt when she left got.

She wouldn't let the vision she'd witnessed come to pass.

She couldn't.

**And that's that. Unfortunately, not much happened in this chapter since I needed to get everyone together, but next time (god only knows when that will be) should have some action. Happy Holidays everyone!**


	25. Chapter 11: There is only Power

**Hi all, Joe Elf here with the finale.**

**Well, that took far longer than it should have, but at last I have kept my promise. I have completed this fanfiction. There are no words to describe how I feel right now. According to the original file, I began writing this in November 2011. Almost three full years later, it's all over. As a fair warning, I still might edit this chapter slightly. If I do, I'll be uploading an epilogue as well and I'll mention it in a A/N there, so no worries. I'd like to thank all the people who had enough faith (or simply weren't looking at the dates) who followed and/or favorited this story since I posted the last chapter and all the others who were a part of this grand adventure. Without further ado, the final chapter.**

**EDIT 10/04/2015:  
>A bit late, I suppose, but I just want to give a little thanks to those who reviewed after I posted the final chapter: guest, EquinoxWolf, Robotfairy, LoZfanbman, Guest and Guest. Thank you all so very much. I debated for a long time whether to write an epilogue for "book 2", but I decided against it for a few reasons. First of all, there are no major plot elements left. Wrapping side-plots up is all good and fun, but it would be very anti-climactic. Second, there's only a single side-plot that really might need to be resolved and in all honesty you should be able to figure it out without me having to write it down.<strong>

**For anyone willing to believe me, I do actually plan on writing another fic at some point in the future. However, that will be in a decade at the rate things are going, so don't count on it. On that note: enjoy.**

Chapter 11:_ There is only Power_

"I got it!" Okami called up to Kitsune. They had arrived at the derelict old house that had once belonged to the Hero of Time and in no time at all had found the tall ladder that led down to the basement. Scrambling back up, she held out the folded piece of parchment to her sister.

"I don't suppose he would mind if we sneaked a peak, would he?" said the one holding the letter, winking.

"Of course not," approved the other craning her neck to read while her sister unfolded it.

As their eyes slowly descended the paper, they got wider and wider. "We need to get this to everyone as fast as possible..." whispered Okami. Kits nodded. "I don't suppose you bothered to learn the teleport spell?" She shook her head.

Without sharing another word, they dashed out of the house and began the long trek to the cave Link sometimes mentioned.

* * *

><p>Kyo's eyes snapped open. Finally, his master had appeared. And it appeared he had brought along his new apprentice... This was going to be fun. The duo slowed to a halt a few meters into the enormous chamber, waiting for his reaction...<p>

"Welcome, my friends, to the world god only knows." With much agility, he jumped down from the throne he had carved and waved a lazy hand towards the other three occupants. "Allow me to present to you the Golden Goddesses. As I'm sure you can tell, this isn't their... most glorious appearance."

Romal swallowed nervously. In front of him were supposedly the three goddesses that created the world from nothing, yet they they were wrapped in rags and chained to the wall. And he was about to fight the one who managed to get them into such a state.

Kyo smiled coldly. With a snap of his fingers, he materialized two swords and threw one across the room to Romal's feet. "You can't well fight without a sword, can you?" He turned to the goddesses. "Now witness as your only chance of rescue is smitten before your eyes!"

Fourth and Romal locked eyes. "This is your fight now. Go without falter." Romal nodded, gripped the sword tightly and dashed forward to meet his destiny. From the very first strike, the battle was intense; sparks flying in every direction and frantic yet controlled movements from both sides.

Yet for some reason Fourth was not watching the battle, but the three chained girls in the furthest point from the exit; carefully examining their expressions. All he observed, however, was the same glare of hatred and pain directed towards himself. Sighing, he turned around as he felt the next person enter the arena.

* * *

><p>Worried somewhat that he had guessed the wrong place since the door had been left wide open, Roy quickly entered the large rock cave. Immediately, he stopped in his tracks, not believing what his eyes saw. There before him was his own son fighting to the death with Kyo while Fourth himself simply stood there watching, turning around only when he stepped inside.<p>

"What are you doing! Stop them! Romal, get away from him!" he heard himself yell. Whether it be by excellent training or simply lack of hearing, however, the two combatants did not so much as start when he spoke. Fourth, on the other hand took two steps to plant himself firmly between father and son.

"I can't let you interfere. He must finish this on his own."

Roy spluttered and stuttered for a moment, taking one step back. Then, suddenly, his brow furrowed and his hand steadied on the hilt of the sword at his side. "I cannot and WILL not let my son die," declared the king's strong voice, "No matter the circumstance."

"So be it," nodded Fourth, reaching out to grab a newly-materialized glowing red sword.

On the other side of the room, Din slumped down in a heap, unconscious.

Suddenly, it seemed as though Roy was no longer himself. Amplified by some sort of magic, his royal blade grew to twice it's normal size as he lashed out viciously towards his enemy. Fourth, for once, was fighting seriously, deflecting the oncoming attack to the side and attempting to physically attack his opponent while destabilized. With unnatural strength, however, Roy managed to follow through with his movement and bring his blade back around to attack him from behind; a blow that he only dodged by rolling forward and away. A few heavy exchanges later, they were both pushed each other back to their starting positions just as two others entered the room.

The sight that greeted Midna and Link as the stepped into the room was a thrilling one indeed. Directly before them were Fourth and Roy, swords raised to each other. Behind them, Romal and Kyo faced off, sparks flying as neither side let up the attack. Close by, three girls were chained to the wall, with red, green and blue hair, respectively, two of which seemed to be unconscious.

Version 2 stepped forwards, unsheathing his weapon. "Now we shall fight, false God, and though your wrong cannot be made right, you must still be dealt with."

"Link you're..." began Midna, trying to hold him back. Upon realizing who she was speaking to, her eyes narrowed. "No matter your vendetta against Fourth, I won't allow you to lead my husband to his death.

"That is not your decision to make, Twilight Queen, this man was mine to begin with," she retorted. Then, before she could do anything else, Other Link took hold of the wrist that was holding him back and used it to throw her across the room with far more strength than Link could ever have. Smashing head-first into the wall, Midna slumped to the floor unconscious, her orange hair now stained red.

"Now then," stated v2, "let us see your full potential, _oh Fourth God_."

"Fine by me, I won't hold back anymore," nodded Fourth, gripping his weapon with both hands. "The time has come when fated men must needs fall here."

This time, it was he who attacked the two of them, swinging precisely and viciously at Roy, on his right, then sweeping across and locking blades with Link, to his left, and quickly pressing up against him as the King follow up attack sliced through the air behind him. Slipping past the Hero, he reversed his sword's direction and attacked Roy from the side, only to be blocked by his own sword. So as to not give up pressure, the God quickly pulled back his arm and made to strike Link in the face with his hilt, only to have it solidly connect with the Hylian Shield.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the room, the battle between Kyo and Romal raged on, neither side letting up in the least. Several times, the young one had almost allowed himself to be amazed that after mere days of training he was able to match the speed and efficiency of a demigod. _Almost_. If he allowed any such thoughts into his mind, he would lose. He was sure of it. Kyo, on the other hand, was swinging away wildly. It seemed that his madness had no effect on his fighting skill as he was a quick and strong as ever. Locking blades once more, the two of them ran along side each other, both hoping to get around the other and finally deal a decisive blow. Instead, they both smashed headfirst into the wall onto which were chained the Goddesses, shattering their chains. Regaining their spirits, the two quickly went at each other once more.

* * *

><p>Finally, she had arrived. Huffing and puffing, Zelda made her way up the small passageway at barely a quicker pace than a very slight jog. She made it. She was going to see Kyo again. She would help him. She would... Her heart skipped a beat. She could hear it. From within the temple, she could hear the sounds of fighting; of steel clashing against steel. Lungs screaming for air and legs threatening to give out, she sprinted the rest of the way up the rubble staircase and through the door. The sight she saw froze her in place, chills shaking her body all over.<p>

On one side, her lover, Kyo, faced her son, Romal, weapons clashing. On the other, Fourth crossed weapons with none other than her former husband and the Hero of Time. Midna was on the floor, her hair redder than usual as blood trickled down the side of her head. A blue-haired girl stood over her. She rose, hands stained crimson, and advanced on Zelda herself.

"No... no... this can't be..." she muttered, eyes wide in shock and horror, "This isn't happening... it can't be... no... NO! STOP!" she was yelling, but no one could hear her, absorbed as they were in their own conflicts. Just as in her vision, the girl jumped into her, becoming a specter as their bodies collided. The Princess cried out in pain, as she felt herself seize up and stretch out. Collapsing forward, she tried to reach out a hand; to tell them to stop fighting; to prevent...

* * *

><p>No epic pose, no dieing speech, no moment of sudden realization as he was transpierced with a sword. Nothing. Romal saw the opportunity and took it, continuing his previous attack and breaking through Kyo's defenses and cutting a deadly, deep gash into his chest, felling him almost instantly. No time to rest, he spun around.<p>

* * *

><p>They fought well, Fourth had to admit that much. They were far more dangerous than the last time they had met him. Undoubtedly, they had been training. However, the fact remained that ultimately it was three against two. And he had more experience. If he was patient, he would win... Then the moment came. He felt it. Lashing out, he sent Roy's sword flying and cut through him, turning to Link's astonished face and, taking advantage of the surprise, felled him as well. Ready for the true decisive clash, he turned and immediately locked swords with his student.<p>

"Are you prepared to die on this day?" he asked.

"I am."

"Then let the dance of death begin."

Before Zelda's weeping eyes, they began fighting anew, though this fight was somewhat different. It was not and adrenaline-packed power-house fight as the others had been. Instead, they watched each other closely for long droughts, then clashed once, and returned to their position.

"This is what you wanted, isn't it? For us to fight? Master and Student?"

"Ultimately, yes. That is the purpose for which I have trained you."

A quick, indecisive exchange.

"And if you lose this battle?"

"If I fall before you...

Another quick attack.

"Then I will have succeeded in what I came here to do, and your training will be complete."

"What you came here to do!" Zelda's voice rang across the large room. "Then you came here to kill Link, my husband, Kyo and Midna?"

"Calm yourself, Nayru. And it is impolite to use another's body without permission."

For a moment, her outline shined blue, then the blue-haired girl from before stood by her side.

"You should return to the sacred realm, like your sisters. I do believe you have some making up to do..." stated Fourth. Indeed, the two other vessels that had contained the Goddesses were no longer there.

"So be it, I shall watch you plan unfold from afar, failure," she nodded, her body fading from view.

"Please..." the actual Zelda's voice now sounded meekly. Don't kill each other. No one more should die... Please stop..."

Romal sighed. "Tell me, Fourth, can this weapon even hurt you? Do you not need divine intervention to be truly defeated? Is that not what you told me?"

"Perhaps that blade is special, then," he responded. "After all, it managed to kill Kyo."

"Don't lie to me."

...

_slash_

_..._

And just like that, it was over. Fourth fell to the floor, sword stuck in his skull, slowly bleeding out.

Zelda breathed in sharply. Silence fell.

Then there were miracles. Slowly, Link and Roy, opened their eyes and pushed themselves up, blinking. Midna's eyes fluttered open, and she clutched her head moaning.

"What happened?" asked Link, astounded. "Last thing I remember is walking in here and now..."

"Same here," confirmed Roy. "It's the same thing as what happened... at... the castle..." he stuttered a bit, while saying it, considering what he had done.

"No worries," said Midna, "It wasn't just you. Something's been wrong with Link as well."

"Don't worry," said Romal, "That won't be happening any more. The ones who were possessing you were the Goddesses. Since they've returned to their duties, you'll be safe now."

"The Goddesses!?" asked Midna, shocked, "That's a nasty attitude for a Goddess. Are you sure?"

"Wait a minute..." interrupted Roy, "Romal, what are you doing here. How did..." his voice trailed off as everyone stared at him.

"Fourth showed me how to fight. He said that he couldn't kill his own son, so I should do it in his stead. As for why I killed him..." He paused for a moment before resuming. "I'm not yet sure, but he wanted to die. So I obliged. He said that would accomplish his purpose in coming here. I'm sure I'll find out soon enough. I honestly don't even know how I killed him, if I actually did."

"Perhaps..." began Zelda, "Perhaps it is as he said: that sword is imbued with special powers. I managed to... managed..." her voice trailed off.

"That can't be it," Romal muttered, almost to himself, "To be able to kill a God but not a demigod? Unlikely. There is still one piece of the puzzle that's missing..." he sighed, the look over his shoulder. "Hey, how long are you going to pretend you're dead?"

Kyo rose from the ground, wiping himself off. "Perceptive. You were a good find."

The warriors' eyes widened as they adopted combat stances. "Surrender, Kyo! We don't want to hurt you!" yelled Link, knowing full well it was they who were going to get hurt should anything happen. To most everyone's surprise, however, he merely took a few steps forward and bowed deeply.

"I apologize."

"The same trick won't work twice, Kyo..."

"But this time, it's no trick. Allow me to explain," he began, straightening up. "I actually know very little myself. My Mast... my father took me in at a young age. So young I can barely even remember. He trained me for the better part of my life, before granting me the independence to act as I saw fit. While he never told me anything of my past or his, he obviously knew something. And I _trusted_ him. I still do. Then, eventually, the whole "Dark Sword" mishap took place and I ended up leaving, to recover. During that time, he came to me. He told me there was something he wanted me to do: invade this world without holding back. He didn't tell me why he wanted it done, but he asked me to take care of it, so I did. The Goddesses, however, chose that moment to apprehend me, they wanted me to obey them, and not my father. I know that they have always hated each other, or rather, that the Goddesses have always hated him, but I never knew why. In order for the plan to succeed, I needed them out of my way, so I attempted to escape. Eventually, they decided that i wasn't worth it, and that i should be killed. Yet for some reason..." Kyo looked up at the ceiling. "For some reason, Din refused to remove me... Turned her back on her sister to please me... Unfortunately, that is all I know."

A moment of tense silence passed before Link said "I feel it too. Something's missing. Some vital piece of information that we don't have. But now..." he looked down at Fourth's mangled corpse.

Suddenly two others burst into the room. "Kits! Ami!" gasped Midna, "You're here too?" The twins collapsed on the floor, breathing heavily after running such a long distance.

"We.. came.. as.. fast.. as.. we.. could..." panted Kistune.

"Fourth... asked... us... to... stand... in... for... him... at... his... job..." finished Okami.

"His job?" questioned Zelda. Still laying on the ground, Ami took a folded letter out of her vest and held it up.

"You'll never... live to see... the day when... being dead will block his way..."

Romal stepped forwards and grasped the letter. Opening it, he read the contents aloud.

* * *

><p><em>Dear Friends,<em>

_Well, should be dead by now. If I'm not, it means something's gone wrong. I know you're all very capable in the matters of adventuring and crises, so no doubt you have all realized that there is still a missing piece to the puzzle of this adventure. I plan on explaining everything here._

_It all begins when I was created. I say not born, for I was not the result of procreation, but created by the Goddesses. You see, I am not a god. I am simply the first prototype the Goddesses ever made of Hylians. Back then, they were foolish. Or perhaps I was. They did not understand what power was to non-deities, thus they gifted me with all the power they could. Strength, wisdom and courage, and in far greater quantities than the Triforce. I was alone in the world at the time, so to ebb the boredom, I trained; got even stronger. But as I trained, I made a mistake. Power was the most important attribute. Without power, even if one has courage and wisdom, they cannot accomplish anything. That is, in fact, a true statement. What I failed to realize was that power without wisdom and courage cannot be properly controlled. My desire for more power grew out of control. I wanted more. Desired more. Lusted for more! Lusted for Din... Then one day, I asked she come to the mortal world alone. On that day, I forced myself upon her._

_Realizing what I had done, the other Goddesses vowed to destroy me, yet they couldn't. They had made me their equal by inadvertence and could do nothing but swear vengeance. They tried to convince Din to eradicate the child, but she refused. When you were born, Kyo, the other two Goddesses stole you away from her and, since they could not kill you, banished you to the mortal realm, where I found you. I'm sorry I never told you; I did not want thoughts of your own vengeance to cloud your judgment._

_Now Romal, I speak directly to you. Do you remember when I told you about love? About how gods are not privy to that emotion? I am no god, so I loved. As for the Goddesses... If it were possible, I would want to show them love. If it were not for what I'd done, that would be my mission. I would like to believe that at least Din, who refused to destroy her child, may understand the concept. Be that as it may, there are things even the Goddesses can't do. That is why I stayed alive. For years I did my best to ensure the ultimate protection of the world as the natives would want it. And that task now falls to you. After what happened with me, the Goddesses realized that giving others their powers was dangerous and so they locked everyone out of it. After years of searching, I found a way to remove this barrier. That is what I did to you._

_That is why you could kill me, but not Kyo. While you bested him in combat, you do not hold the power to destroy a god; even a demigod. The power of Din that resides inside him keeps him alive. I, on the other hand, have only the original power that was granted to me, and that I passed on to you. Due to our properties, the Goddesses may not simply _will_ us away. As long as you are undefeated, as I was until moments ago, you are immortal. The only reason the Goddesses could not get rid of me so long ago was that they could not best be in battle, though they tried._

_As for why I have decided to die, it is simple, and no doubt you've already guessed. I have lived long enough, and I grow tired. As I am mortal, my spirit will now rest within the Sacred Realm. Though the Goddesses shall no doubt punish me for my actions, I feel that it is time I payed for what I've done and finally started the eternal road towards redemption. I bestow upon you my responsibilities of safe-keeping the land; something I believe comes naturally with the great power we yield._

_You are free to do as you wish with this power. If you want to ignore it, that's up to you._

_As for what Kyo is saying, it is true. I asked him to do this in order to pass on my knowledge to another in a appropriate manner and, of course, I always wanted to die in true combat. Please forgive him for what he has done on my orders._

_And Kyo... I'm sorry for everything I've put you through. The harsh training when you were but a child, the forced isolation as you watched the first _true_ Hylians grow up as you could only watch, the endless and deadly missions I sent you on far before you had the strength to face them, for asking you to attack the first people you ever befriended to satisfy my selfish desires... Please, if I may give you one last command... The time for secrecy has come to an end. You may... No, I order you to have fun! Enjoy your life! Enjoy your company and your friends! Romal will tell you of the lies I told you, but while they may not be helping you the way you thought they were, they are still giving you power. Perhaps we shall meet again in the Sacred Realm, my son._

_It's a bit funny how nostalgic I am considering what I've done... I could never be a good lover. I could never be a good father. I could never be a good Master. At least I was a good mailman..._

_I cannot sign this, for I have never been named. Fourth, after all, is a lie..._

_With care and regret,  
>Myself.<br>_

_-Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I shall fear no evil-_

* * *

><p><strong>Goodnight sweet prince, and may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.<strong>


End file.
